Oregon Department of Transportation (ODOT) officials say the state transportation department didn’t receive a coveted $750 million federal Infrastructure for Rebuilding America (INFRA) grant it hoped would help fund its plan to expand and cap I-5 through Portland’s Rose Quarter.
While ODOT leaders say they’ll seek other means of funding for the entire Rose Quarter plan, which is currently estimated to cost between $1.5 and $1.9 billion, news of the rejection comes at a tough time for the state transportation department. ODOT has been dealing with a revenue crisis for years and is struggling to balance the state’s basic transportation needs with plans for expensive capital projects in the Portland metro area.
Freeway expansion opponents, who urged the US Department of Transportation to reject ODOT’s grant application, hope the news will encourage transportation leaders and state legislators to rethink the scale of the project. Without the $750 million federal grant, critics say ODOT won’t be able to fund the plan without taking critical resources away from other parts of the state. And while it’s unclear why the federal transportation agency rejected ODOT’s application, freeway expansion opponents are taking the news as a sign of the federal government’s priorities—and urge the state to follow suit…