Vancouver has probably been overcharged millions by long-gone carpetbaggers for “consulting” fees over the Columbia River Crossing (April 17 story “CRC audit questions $17M in costs“). And if that surprises you, then I’ve got a bridge to sell you.
Here’s a great — free — idea about how CRC could work, and satisfy both pro- and anti-light railers.
It is imprudent to build a bridge that we know is too low, and spend the outrageous sum of $3.5 billion, plus mitigation costs to upriver companies. But we want 21st-century transportation, inexpensively done.
How about extending light rail to the edge of the river, then constructing some sort of ski lift/amusement park ride across the Columbia? I don’t think this is as crazy as it sounds. The crossing cars could be enclosed, cute, and go on a continual loop like a ski lift or escalator, stopping now and then for pick-ups and drop-offs. In fact, maybe we could just franchise the crossing off to Starbucks Corporation. Have a traveling Starbucks looping continually across the mighty Columbia. Just be sure to put port-a-potties at either end.
