31 www.ortrucking.org Issue 2 | 2024 on I-205 to help fund a project to widen the freeway between the two bridges, in addition to widening and seismically strengthening the I-205 bridge between West Linn and Oregon City. Following Kotek’s 2023 tolling delay announcement, ODOT announced that it would need to scale back the I-205 project to focus on the Abernethy Bridge improvements, including installing tolling cameras on the bridge to help pay for approximately $385 million of the project’s $662 million price tag. That plan has now been put on hold indefinitely to allow the legislature to discuss transportation funding alternatives in the 2025 legislative session. Kotek’s office has indicated that if additional revenue sources are not identified, ODOT will need to reallocate nearly $400 million from other projects for the Abernethy Bridge project. Impacts on Rose Quarter Improvement Project Some of that funding could be pulled away from the Rose Quarter Improvement Project, which intends to widen I-5 to three lanes in either direction between the I-84 and I-405 junctions in Portland, one of the top bottlenecks in the country, according to ATRI. The Rose Quarter Improvement Project was funded through the same $560 million allocation set aside by the state legislature in 2017 that included the Abernethy project and the tolling study. In a June 2023 report, ODOT wrote that it had been forced to shift most of the balance of that funding package to Abernethy to keep the project on track. The project cost has ballooned to $1.5–1.9 billion and last year, ODOT said that it would not be able to begin construction on the project unless additional funding was identified. In March 2024, the U.S. Department of Transportation announced a $450 million grant for the Rose Quarter Improvement Project specifically to help with construction of the “lid” over part of the freeway intended to reconnect the historically Black Albina neighborhood, which was divided by the original construction of I-5, a step forward for the project, but one that fails to provide meaningful funding to help start construction. ODOT’s most recent estimate for the project’s budget shortfall was $1 billion—including anticipated toll revenue. One transportation project that will not be impacted by the Governor’s decision to pause tolling implementation is the Interstate Bridge Replacement Project. The $6 billion project will continue to move forward on schedule and tolls on the bridge will be implemented to help pay in part for the project. However, instead of ODOT handling toll collection, as originally planned, tolls will now be collected by the Washington State Department of Transportation, which has existing toll collection infrastructure in place. ODOT’s Budget Shortfall “Conundrum” The loss of projected toll revenue promises to have significant impacts on the Rose Quarter Improvement Project, the Abernethy Bridge Project, and many other state transportation investments, including those already in progress. “Tolling was a significant part of the revenue calculation in (the 2017 transportation package) for some of those mega projects like the Rose Quarter project, which the trucking industry is very interested in seeing addressed,” OTA President & CEO Jana Jarvis recently told KGW News. “So, leaves us with a bit of a conundrum.” As Oregon’s gas tax revenue (ODOT’s primary source of revenue) declines due to the increase in electric and more fuelefficient cars, transportation funding will become even more limited, which is one reason why the state initially turned to tolling to make up that shortfall. Compounding those budget challenges is the revelation that ODOT has been overcharging commercial trucks their weight-mile tax for many years, resulting in the trucking industry’s lawsuit against the state. The Governor’s decision to pause the implementation of tolling will now turn up the pressure on the state legislature to address transportation funding in the 2025 legislative session. ODOT, the OTC, and Governor Kotek have all indicated that tolling is not off the table, particularly if the legislature fails to find solutions for ODOT’s budget shortfalls. OTA’s advocacy team is already deeply engaged in conversations with legislators, ODOT, and other decisionmakers to ensure the voice of Oregon trucking is heard as the state seeks to address the current budget shortfall while forging ahead on infrastructure projects already in place, such as the Rose Quarter and Abernethy Bridge. If you have questions or input on the state’s transportation priorities, OTA encourages you to get involved with its advocacy work and make your voice heard.
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