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A
Bridge to the
Twentieth Century: Megaproject Technocracy and the Columbia River
Crossing
Introduction
Who are the actors involved?
The Future of the CRC
References & Links
Comments
& questions to:
ambrown@macalester.edu
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A
Bridge to the
Twentieth Century: Megaproject Technocracy and the Columbia River
Crossing
Businesses: "Build, Baby, Build"
While
environmentalists and fiscal conservatives have begun articulating
economic arguments against the construction of the facility, it is
important to note how Portland’s business community have used economic
arguments in support of as large of a bridge as possible. “This [CRC
project] is the No. 1 transportation priority for us,” stated Marion
Hayes,
the government affairs director of the Portland Business
Alliance. Business leaders have also been keen on citing a report
released by Metro in 2005 that suggests that congestion along the
corridor has cost the region $844 million a year in lost productivity. Citing Portland’s disadvantageous geographic
location, business interests have strongly supported the construction
of a large bridge under the premise that the increased lanes will help
regional businesses stay competitive by lowering transportation costs
and that the construction of the facility will bring desperately needed
jobs to the metropolitan area with the second highest unemployment in
the country. A recent letter written by the Portland Business Alliance and cosigned by numerous pro-business organizations
firmly notes that while input towards the final plan are encouraged,
“…the process must contribute to, and not detract from, moving forward
on a project crucial to the well-being of the entire region.”
This flies in the face of the activists who have advocated for a complete overhaul of the planning processes that would undeniably delay the project further into the future.
These
assertions rely on a certain scientific logic that this particular
bottleneck in traffic is solely the cause of this gigantic sum in lost
productivity, and that the simple upgrade of this segment of I5 would
alleviate congestion without network-wide implications. There's no
dollar value assigned to the productivity that could be gained by
alleviating congestion through a toll across the bridge, the value of
helping Oregon and Washington meet their respective goals for carbon
neutrality, or the other opportunity costs of spending billions of
dollars on this one particular transportation project.
This
arrangement of actors provides an interesting twist to the traditional
political party coalitions generally seen both in Oregon and
nationally. Labor and union groups are partnering with business
interests in their advocacy for the facility, while fiscal
conservatives and environmentalists are also unlikely bedfellows in
their concerns about the size of the project. This creates unique
circumstances for politicians of each party to navigate.
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Photo Credit Jenny Cestnik
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Last updated: 3rd May 2010
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