Contractor Search Begins for $14.4B Washington-Oregon I-5 Bridge Replacement
According to OPB, the bi-state Interstate Bridge Replacement Program cleared its final federal hurdle on July 1 when the Federal Highway Administration and Federal Transit Administration issued an amended Record of Decision, completing the project’s National Environmental Policy Act review. The approval lets planners begin construction on the full scope covered by the environmental document: removing the existing spans, adding an auxiliary lane, building connections to Hayden Island and State Route 14, and reserving space for light rail on the new bridge.
The megaproject now moves toward hiring its first contractor. Per the Program’s own industry day materials, a Request for Qualifications was issued July 6, with a Request for Proposals to follow later this year. Program administrators expect to have a Columbia River Bridges contractor under contract in 2027, with construction beginning in 2028.
The current 109-year-old span carries more than 143,000 vehicles a day between Vancouver, Washington and Portland, Oregon, and sits on timber support piles in loose sand that engineers warn could liquefy and collapse the bridge in a major earthquake. The structure also lacks dedicated transit lanes and creates chronic backups when its lift span opens for river traffic.
Cost estimates for the full five-mile corridor, including the new bridges, connecting ramps and a light-rail extension to downtown Vancouver, now sit at $13.5 billion to $15.2 billion, with a working target of $14.4 billion, up sharply from a 2022 estimate of $6 billion. Program officials attribute nearly half the increase to risk contingency and inflation baked in over the build timeline, plus market uncertainty including tariffs. Washington and Oregon currently have $5.5 billion in committed state and federal funding, with the Program pursuing an additional $1 billion through the Federal Transit Administration’s Capital Investment Grant program.
What It Means for Subcontractors
The RFQ opens the door for heavy civil, marine, and structural contractors to position for one of the largest bridge programs in North America. Firms with major river-crossing, seismic-retrofit, or light-rail integration experience have a narrow qualification window before the RFP stage narrows the field later this year, with contractor selection targeted for 2027 and mobilization in 2028.
