Date:
Tuesday, January 16, 2007
Contact:
Danielle Cogan, Public Information Officer, 360-816-8857 or 360-904-4863
VANCOUVER – The Columbia River Crossing project has recommended a set of bridge and transit options to improve safety and congestion on I-5 between Oregon and Washington. Public comment is encouraged on the proposal.
The staff recommendation contains the river crossing and transit options to advance for further analysis in the Draft Environmental Impact Statement (DEIS) process. The proposed new bridge would replace the existing Interstate Bridge and carry all cars, trucks, bicycles and pedestrians over the Columbia River on five or six lanes in each direction. The new bridge would be high enough to eliminate the need for a lift span and low enough to avoid the airspace of Pearson Air Park. The two proposed transit options, Bus Rapid Transit and Light Rail, would operate on the new bridge to provide options to commuters traveling between Clark County and downtown Portland.
An intensive outreach effort has begun to discuss the proposed bridge and transit options with the community. The CRC project team will host four open houses in Oregon and Washington and is actively engaging neighborhood, community and civic groups in Clark County and Portland.
Open houses have been scheduled in Oregon and Washington for the public to learn about the staff recommendations and provide comment.
Wednesday, January 17
5:30 p.m. - 7:30 p.m.
Police Dept Training Room
507 SW First Street
Battle Ground, WA
Saturday, January 20
9:30 a.m. – 1:00 p.m.
Lincoln Elementary School
4200 NW Daniels Street
Vancouver, WA
Thursday, January 25
4:30 p.m. – 7:30 p.m.
Oregon Association of Minority Entrepreneurs
4134 N Vancouver Avenue
Portland, OR
Tuesday, January 30
6:30 pm – 8:30 pm
12050 N. Jantzen Dr. (next to Safeway)
Hayden Island Portland, OR
Community input will be shared with the CRC Task Force, a 39-member advisory group representing Washington and Oregon communities interested in the project. On February 27, 2007, the Task Force will accept or modify the staff recommendation based on public comment and committee discussion.
The recommended bridge and transit options performed better on nearly all evaluation criteria adopted by the CRC Task Force for analysis. The evaluation process follows a standard set of guidelines outlined by the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA). NEPA requires federally funded projects to evaluate a range of alternatives and the impacts of those alternatives on the environment. It also requires agencies proposing a project to consider input from the public, Tribal Governments and other agencies before making a final decision.
The Columbia River Crossing is a joint project of the Oregon Department of Transportation and the Washington Department of Transportation. For more information visit the project website at www.columbiarivercrossing.org.
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