So it seems that the Columbia River Crossing debacle has come to an end according to the May 22 story “R.I.P., CRC: Project shutdown in final days; loose ends remain.”
Good riddance. The sad part of all of this is that we who live and commute here need that bridge built. Everyone knows that. The bridges we have now are old, outdated, and potentially unsafe. If we have an earthquake, hang it up. This was halted by we the people for one simple word: “ridiculous.” The Oregon governor’s “No light rail, no bridge” statement was what really killed this. Not just the fact that it would have almost doubled the cost of the project, to be paid for by tolling the commuters, to accommodate that one-stop light rail, they would have to lower the overall height of the bridge. They planned to pay a couple of our very lucrative businesses hundreds of millions of our tax/toll dollars to possibly relocate because of the proposed low deck.
Money talks. Lobbyists clearly were helping Oregon’s governor. Even our own mayor was against this project before he was for it.
In the end, this proves that ultimately the people have the last say. Not lobbyists, contractors, or unions. We the people.
