Let’s stop all this fussing and bleeding of design money over a new I-5 Columbia River Crossing, that in the end will not solve our congestion problems. Let’s build a new bridge between 164th and 192nd avenues feeding off state Highway 14 and onto Oregon Interstate 84 for easy transition west to Portland and east to wherever. This approach and location seems to make a lot of sense in that Clark County’s growth pattern appears to be east of 164th Avenue — both residential and commercial.
Camas and Washougal are stretching their combined development muscles and will more than likely be the leaders in Clark County’s and Southwest Washington’s economic development in the near future. A bridge in that area would not only relieve congestion on I-5 and I-205 but would enhance economic development in Clark County. The “Bridge Nez Perce.” Wouldn’t that be a nice name?
Then, bring light rail over to the 164th Avenue C-Tran location for connection to existing bus facilities that could serve Clark College — infrastructure that is up and running.
Can you imagine the disruption this would save Vancouver compared to the I-5 plan, not to mention the probable savings? A bridge this far upriver may not pose the same height problems of lower river commercial traffic.
