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Bringing Change
To the Quarter

Safely connecting communities today while investing in people for a better tomorrow

Learn more about the Improvement Project

Happening Now

Events

Meetings

Historic Albina Advisory Board (HAAB) Meeting

May 17, 2022
4:30 PM - 5:30 PM

Details

Community Oversight Advisory Committee (COAC) Meeting

May 19, 2022
4:00 PM - 6:00 PM

Details
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Project Features

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Highway cover

A highway cover is a concrete, steel platform that is placed over a highway, similar to a wide bridge. Multiple designs for the highway cover were evaluated through an Independent Cover Assessment. The Proposed Hybrid 3 Concept was selected, as it will provide the greatest community benefit.

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Hancock Crossing

The Proposed Hybrid 3 Concept maintains the existing N Flint Avenue I-5 overcrossing. In the future, people walking, rolling, biking, and driving will be able to use a new connection over I-5 connecting N and NE Hancock Street.

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Local Street, Bicycle and Pedestrian Facilities

The I-5 Rose Quarter Improvement Project will improve local streets to make them safer by offering greater visibility, protection and access to people walking, rolling and biking through the Rose Quarter area.

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I-5 Ramp-to-Ramp Connections

Three roadways (I-5, I-84 and I-405) intersect in the short distance between the Morrison and Fremont bridges. Ramp-to-ramp connections (auxiliary lanes) will provide a direct connection that allows people to transition from one interchange ramp to the next without merging into through traffic, so drivers experience a safer, more reliable trip with less potential for crashes.

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I-5 Southbound off-Ramp relocation

The I-5 Rose Quarter Improvement Project moves the I-5 southbound off-ramp to south of NE Weidler at NE Wheeler Avenue. The I-5 southbound on-ramp location will not change.

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Please note that this graphic is conceptual, and the project design and cover shape may change as design progresses.

Did you know?

I-5 between I-84 and I-405 is the top traffic bottleneck in Oregon and the 28th worst freight bottleneck in the nation as of 2021.

This section of I-5 has 3.5 times more crashes than the statewide average and some of the highest traffic volumes in the state.

I-5 in the Rose Quarter has traffic congestion for 12 hours each day. As congestion and safety issues increase, travel on I-5 between I-84 and I-405 becomes less reliable for drivers and freight movement.

The highway lacks full shoulders in many spots, making it difficult to clear accidents and tough for emergency vehicles to respond quickly.

Some of the project area is challenging to navigate for people walking, rolling and biking. Many of the local streets lack neighborhood connections and are undersized or incomplete.

Project Timeline

Project Timeline

2017: Oregon legislators pass House Bill 2017 "Keep Oregon Moving" which partially funds the I-5 Rose Quarter Improvement Project. The Federal Highway Association (FHWA) and ODOT initiate the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) environmental review.

2018: City of Portland adopts the Central City 2035 Plan and 2035 Transportation System Plan which both include the project. In addition, Metro includes the project in its 2018 Regional Transportation Plan.

2019: ODOT releases the NEPA Environmental Assessment (EA) and holds a 45-day comment period.

2020: ODOT issues notice of intent to award a Construction Manager/General Contractor and releases the Cost to Complete Report. The Federal Highway Administration issues a Finding of No Significant Impact for the I-5 Rose Quarter Improvement Project joined with a Revised Environmental Assessment.

2021: ODOT releases an updated design package that reflects community input from the Environmental Assessment and informs the work of the construction team. Project advisory committees recommend adoption.

2023-2029: Tentative construction of I-5 Rose Quarter Improvement Project.

Ongoing: The project team continues to intentionally listen, inform, and engage with communities of color, especially the historically impacted Black Albina community, the primary community displaced by past public and private development decisions.

Select a node on the timeline to learn more.

Historic structure in Rose Quarter

History in Albina
and Looking to the Future

The first two decades of the federal interstate system construction displaced more than a million Americans. In the 1950s and 60s, this construction had a profoundly negative impact on communities of color.

In Portland, generations of Black families in the Albina neighborhood are still haunted by the lasting impact of the loss of their homes, businesses, places of worship and social cohesion. The construction of I-5, the Veterans Memorial Coliseum, Legacy Emanuel Hospital, Portland Public School Blanchard and "urban renewal" divided and displaced communities in North and Northeast Portland leaving generational trauma in its wake.

Watch and listen to the Voices of Albina

Success Stories

Learn more about the people who make this project possible

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Get Involved

Join our mailing list

Stay in the loop by viewing our past email updates or by signing up for our mailing list.

Send us a Question or Comment

We want to hear from you as we continue work to design the project in cooperation with the community.

Call us at 503-470-3127 or email us at i5rosequarter@odot.oregon.gov with any questions or comments.

Attend a Meeting or Event

We host a variety of events to share information, get input on the project and answer your questions, including open houses, discussion groups, and tabling events. We also have monthly committee meetings, where two community-led committees meet with the project team and advise on topics such as project design and contracting guidelines.

Visit our Meetings & Events page to attend our next meeting or event!

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