Back That Quotable Ass Up

  "Simply put, it's Orwellian -- our tax dollars are being used to deliberately hide inconvenient facts from the public's eyes," said Evan Manvel who has worked against the CRC project for the Coalition for a Livable Future. "Taxpayers and legislators should be outraged."

This quote via an article in the Columbian that calls into question the role of the Oregon Dept Of Transportation (ODOT). Are they the states auto mechanic, or are they a car salesman?

Oh. They are both.

Now unless you have a close, trusting relationship your mechanic/salesman you probably want to have them be separate entities. If not, you would certainly raise an eyebrow if every time your car needed a repair their suggestion would be to scrap it and buy a hummer-limo.

Forget "picking the kids up from the pool" try putting a pool in your car!

But even Hummer-limos are cheap compared to the cost of the Columbia River Crossing. Estimates hover between 3-8 billion dollars, which might seem like a lot for a bridge, but then this is more than just a new bridge, its a massive freeway expansion project.

ODOT spokesman Don Hamilton said both the northbound span, built in 1917, and the southbound span, finished in 1958, were rated as functionally obsolete in their 2011 inspections.

 
Manvel called the definition of a 'functionally obsolete' bridge a "term of art."

"I just think their spin machine is in full cycle," Manvel said. "They're working to remove anything that undermines their case. If we can't trust the information they're putting out on their own web page, why would we trust them in their new reports?"

He pointed out that the states lack money for the maintenance they need to do now, let alone find more funding for large new projects like the CRC.

ODOT is in a difficult place.  On one hand this governmental body is advocating for taxpayers to pay for the largest, most expensive infrastructure the region has ever known, and on the other hand it is responsible for providing info about the status of the current infrastructure to be replaced. For those following the project, this sort of conflicting interest, along with the numerous inconsistencies (such as their models showing traffic levels increasing over the next 20 years when they have also reported that traffic has decreased over the past 20 years)  has caused a significant credibility gap in our regional planners.

Couve Traffic Warning

TRAFFIC ALERT

ALL THOSE DRIVING IN THE CITY OF VANCOUVER[break] IN THE STATE OF WASHINGTON[break] TODAY ON THE DATE OF 9/4/09[break] BETWEEN THE HOURS OF FIVE PM AND TEN PM[break] TAKE WARNING. ON THESE STREETS

• SEVENTH
• EIGHTH
• NINTH
• TENTH

YOU WILL BE ASKED TO GO AROUND[freak].WE APOLOGIZE FOR THE INCONVENIENCE

Stop The CRC dot ORG

A fresh face in the transportation battle.

Finally some traction in this battle. The only way to beat such large, powerful faceless organization as those promoting the CRC is to work together. But how can people organize?

A great way is to use your massively smart brain to do some searching of the internerds. Then you would learn that there are a variety of groups that don't want a massive "one bridge to rule them all" solution.

CLF
BTA
kFA
TLA


Joining the ranks is a new group created by various cyclists, peace activists, and Rising Tide (a direction action environmental group).

We are calling for a back-to-the-drawing board approach
to regional transportation policy that de-prioritizes highway expansions and
puts as its first goal reducing air pollution (& its cost to surrounding
communities), decreasing our use of foreign oil, and improving our region's
bike and public transportation infrastructure. - StopTheCRC.org (available soon!)

Talk to them at Sunday Parkways

• STOP THE CRC BRIDGE
• Sunday 19 July
• Sunday Parkways Northeast!!!
• Fernhill Park: NE 37th + Ainsworth

Come on out, meet your neighbor! (or meet people who might be your neighbor if you both come from the same hood and meet each other.)