Bing Blog the Which is Where?

Ding! Dong! The Witch is dead!

The CRC, a massive highway expansion project to place 5 lanes of travel from SW Washington into a 2-lane bottle neck, may have finally breathed its last breath.

Or on its deathbed?  Fatally wounded? Maybe a zombie? Okay fine, it could just be playing possum. It is rather confusing. Take, for example the fact the CRC office has admitted defeat and initially decided that it would spend the next 6 months packing up the office.

Curious. Ya know how sometimes ya hear people ask, "who does your hair?" we have a similar question about who is cutting their checks.

Either way the little guys celebrated a victory. We have been in the business of trying to encompass this titanic behemoth of 1950s design for so long (this blog itself has been pumping out the hits since Spring of 2009) we are not completely sure what we will do now.

We would like to believe that our reporting and testimony means something to the people who would call themselves our "representatives". But what really killed it was that Olympia doesn't like Vancouver (Washington) very much (in fairness it is mutual).

The fact is as long as there are people benefiting from bad design we will continue to get more sprawl and more of all the crap that comes with it. We should stay vigilant as these insane projects are popping up all the time. Meanwhile everywhere our infrastructure is failing.

At least there are good opportunities for lols. 

Hey CRC, Pay me! Pay me!

The comic stylings from those zanny folks at the Columbia River Crossing just dont stop. Here is the latest from their desk which might as well be accompanied by a cartoon strip:

For tall sailboats and yachts, the CRC proposes pulling them out of the water and towing them around the bridge. Another idea: acquiring the vessel and “taking it out of service so that the user no longer has a vessel that needs to transit under the new bridges.” - wweek

Also they want vessles to just take their mast down.

They have not yet suggested that boats float in from the other direction, possibly taking a cruise around Tierra del Fuego or the Cape of Good Hope, but I figure that suggestion will be forthcoming soon.

So now I am left wondering, how do I get a job at the Columbia River Crossing? I am sure I could do just as good a job as they have done ignoring advice, thumbing their nose at government officials and generally offending the local population. That plus I am also qualified at creating things that are absurdly dysfunctional.

Hire me! CRC! I have lots of experience and will need health care from all the cars you are planning on cramming down my throat.

The Economy of the Future Part 3

Joe has some pretty good numbers. In this final episode of his testimony he explains the fallacy of the Safety concerns the CRC people are selling us.


Moreover He shows hos important it is that we improve the railroad bridge for moving freight.



Here is Joe Cortright's 6 Prudent Steps for solving the problems the CRC is trying to solve.

1. Toll the existing bridge
2. Improve transit
3. Fix the railroad bridge
4. Seismic upgrade for I-5 bridge
5. Modify Hayden Island ramps
6. Light rail to Clark County

The Economy of the Future Part 2

What about funding?



Yes he said the CRC is "80 times more expensive than the Ariel Tram"

Not to sound like a jerk, but how dense is PDX? How about the Couve? What about the planners who expect that planners who think that we can build our way out of congestion?

Stand by for the conclusion of Joe Cortright's testimony to City Hall, "The Economy of the Future Part 3" " available here tomorrow.

The Economy of the Future Part 1

Joe Cortright provides some spirited info about the future of building more driving capacity.

Get your econ on.



Thanks for sharing, Joe!

Wait for "The Economy of the Future Part 2", coming tomorrow!