The I-5 Bridge Is Now a $14.4 Billion Project. Here’s What That Means for PNW Contractors.
The cost of replacing the aging Interstate Bridge between Portland and Vancouver has more than doubled since 2022. With construction contracts beginning to advertise in 2026, the region’s most consequential infrastructure project in decades is moving — slowly, expensively, and with enormous opportunity for the construction industry.
If you work in PNW construction and you haven’t been tracking the Interstate Bridge Replacement Program, now is the time to start.
The cost of replacing the Interstate Bridge between Oregon and Washington has jumped approximately 140% from a 2022 estimate of $6 billion to a new target of $14.4 billion OPB — a number that reflects years of project delays, rising materials and labor costs, and tariff pressure that has hit infrastructure projects nationwide.
Washington Governor Bob Ferguson, standing alongside lawmakers and labor leaders in Vancouver in March, was blunt about the path forward: “I’m not interested in looking backwards. We’re building this damn bridge. That’s happening.”
What’s being built
The project goes well beyond a simple bridge swap. The program will replace two aging vertical lift bridges carrying Interstate 5 across the Columbia River, delivering a seismically resilient, multi-modal corridor supporting vehicles, bikes, pedestrians, and light rail transit. CCE l ONLINE NEWS
The light rail component involves a 1.9-mile extension from North Portland to a future station near Evergreen Boulevard in Vancouver, with planners pursuing $1 billion from the Federal Transit Administration’s Capital Investment Program. Washington State Standard Each state has committed approximately $1 billion, with tolls on the existing bridge — expected to begin in 2027 — funding at least $1.2 billion more.
The construction contract opportunity
For contractors, the IBR program represents one of the largest pipelines of publicly advertised work in the region’s history. Several packages are advertising in 2026 alone, including the Marine Drive Package A — a $38 to $58 million CM/GC contract to elevate Marine Drive west of I-5 and reconstruct surrounding roadways to accommodate the light rail alignment. The Ruby Junction TriMet Facility expansion in Gresham, estimated at $45 to $65 million, is also advertising this year, adding five new maintenance bays and expanded light rail vehicle maintenance areas.
Major approach structure work — estimated between $720 million and $1.1 billion — is expected to advertise in 2027 under a progressive design-build or design-build delivery method.
The bigger picture
Construction on the overall project, including the bridge and corresponding interchange overhauls in both Oregon and Washington, could last up to 15 years. OPB For regional contractors, that’s not just one project — it’s a sustained decade-and-a-half construction program in their backyard.
The 109-year-old bridge it replaces is not just aging — it’s a seismic risk. A major Cascadia Subduction Zone earthquake could render it impassable. The region has been talking about replacing it for two decades.
The talking is over. The contracts are coming.
