Frequently Asked Questions

The purpose of the I-5 Rose Quarter Improvement Project is to improve safety and congestion where three major interstates converge and to support reconnecting the Albina neighborhood.

This 1.8-mile stretch of highway is the only two-lane section of I-5 in a major urban area between Canada and Mexico. The project addresses the critical need to keep Oregon's people and economy moving.

The project is needed to address the following issues identified within the project area:

• The top traffic bottleneck in Oregon and the 27th worst freight bottleneck in the nation as of 2025.
• Up to 12 hours of congestion each day.
• A crash rate 3.5 times higher than the statewide average on I-5.
• A lack of full shoulders in key areas of I-5 to clear crashes and to provide emergency vehicles access or movement through traffic.
• A lack of neighborhood connections and undersized, incomplete and inaccessible sidewalks and crossings for people walking, biking and rolling through the surrounding local streets. 

These safety and congestion concerns contribute to Portland having the 17th worst traffic and fourth most daily congestion of the 49 most populous U.S. metros as of 2025. 

Expected project benefits include:

• Smoother traffic flow with space to merge on and off I-5.
• Faster emergency response times with space to navigate to or around incidents.
• Reduced crashes on I-5 by up to 50%.
• Predictable travel times on I-5 for people, services and goods.
• Safer local streets with greater visibility, protection and access for people walking, biking and rolling.
• Restored local street network over I-5.
• Opportunities for small businesses through contracts that build long-term career prospects.
• A new highway cover over I-5 that can accommodate new community development.

Local street improvements will make streets safer by offering greater visibility, protection and access to people walking, biking and rolling. The project includes improvements on local streets for all users, such as better lighting and curb ramps that comply with the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA). The project will improve bike facilities and replace existing bike lanes with either buffered or protected lanes. The addition of a car-free bridge over I-5 will enhance safety and improve access for pedestrians and bicyclists near the Moda Center.

The project area sits in the heart of the historic Albina neighborhood. Albina was a thriving community and business district for Black Portlanders until several major urban renewal and development projects, including the construction of I-5, severed and displaced the community in the 1960s. Because past decisions about public and private development in the historic Albina neighborhood so negatively impacted Black Portlanders, ODOT is committed to engaging with and prioritizing the voices of the historic Albina community.

Since construction began in 2025, crews have advanced stormwater, bridge preservation, made signage improvements, and completed major I-5 repair and maintenance work. This work is preserving existing I-5 infrastructure while also laying the groundwork for future phases of the project.

In July 2026, crews replaced a sign structure near the Oregon Convention Center as part of planned improvements to I-5 and to support an extended merging lane.

From Sept. 11 to Oct. 8, 2026, crews closed southbound I-5 near the Moda Center to replace the rutted, cracked and potholed surface of I-5 with new concrete and replaced 27 bridge joints to increase the longevity of the highway structure. Crews also placed nearly 3,000 linear feet of carbon fiber reinforced polymer (CFRP) bars to improve long-term structural integrity of the interstate.

During this closure, crews also created space near the I-84 off ramp at the Moda Center to extend the merging lane next year, replaced and upgraded barriers and railings with taller ones that meet current safety standards, and relocated a sign for the Morrison/OMSI exit for better visibility.

Work on I-5 bridge preservation, seismic upgrades, and stormwater facilities is ongoing through 2026 and 2027. 

Construction on the Rose Quarter project through 2029 is focused on preserving existing infrastructure and preparing the project area for future phases of construction. Elements under construction include:

• I-5 preservation and seismic resiliency upgrades,
• New stormwater facilities,
• Updated signage,
• Extended auxiliary lane on I-5 southbound between the I-84 and Morison/OMSI exits, and
• Widening near the Rose Quarter Transit Center to increase shoulder width and reconstructing Transit Center infrastructure.  

Construction of future phases will advance as funding becomes available.

For more information on the benefits of work underway and future phases, visit our Construction Phases page.

Travelers can expect continued sidewalk and lane closures on local streets near the Oregon Convention Center, including NE Oregon Street, N Interstate Ave, and NE Lloyd Blvd, for seismic upgrades and sign structure work. There will also be occasional nighttime lane closures and possible shoulder closures on I-5 to construct stormwater facilities, sign structure installation, and I-5 bridge preservation. 

In summer 2027, all lanes of I-5 northbound through the Rose Quarter near Moda Center will be closed for structural repair and maintenance work. Significant delays and unpredictable travel times are expected. More information about the I-5 northbound closure will be available in spring 2027.

To stay informed about upcoming construction and traffic impacts, sign up for email and/or text alerts.

Learn more about these closures on our Travel Impacts page.

The next closure will take place in summer 2027. More details for exact timing will be available this spring. 

In September and October 2026, we completed a four-week closure of I-5 southbound to resurface 2,000 linear feet of the elevated highway structure. Completing this work during a full closure instead of one lane at a time or on the weekends allowed crews to replace and repair the roadway more efficiently and safely at the lowest cost compared to other options. The work provided a smoother, safer driving surface, preserved the freeway for years to come and created the space needed to extend the southbound merging lane from the Moda Center area to the Morrison Bridge/OMSI exit.

This same work is needed on I-5 northbound. A similar closure will take place in summer 2027. All lanes of I-5 northbound through the Rose Quarter near the Moda Center will be closed around the clock for structural repair and maintenance work. View our I-5 Closure Decision Fact Sheet to learn more about how we compared closure options.

Additional information about the northbound closure will be available in spring 2027.

The current cost estimate for the I-5 Rose Quarter Improvement Project is between $1.96 billion –$2.08 billion. This is based on a risk-based estimating process, current inflation assumptions, project schedule, and real-time market data. 

The project was awarded federal Reconnecting Communities and Neighborhood grant funding in spring 2024.

Of the federal funding granted, $67.5 million for design and utility relocation has been obligated for spending on the project.

Sufficient funding is available to complete Phase 1A construction and design of Phase 1.

ODOT and partners – the City of Portland, Metro, Albina Vision Trust, and the Portland Trail Blazers (Rip City Management) – are committed to completing the project in its entirety. The project team is committed to transparency, rigorous risk management, and real-time estimating practices to manage project costs moving forward. 

On March 12, 2024, the Federal Highway Administration issued a Finding of No Significant Impact based on the required environmental review for the project. This federal decision approves the project to proceed into final design and construction.

Click here to find more information about the environmental review process and documentation.

There are sections of I-5 where the width of the highway will change from current conditions to improve travel safety and reduce congestion – some sections will become wider, and some will stay the same. The project will add one new auxiliary lane in each direction on I-5 between I-84 and I-405, which allow drivers to safely merge or exit I-5 outside of the main through-travel lanes. The project will also widen shoulders along this same segment of I-5. Although ODOT will be adding auxiliary lanes, the project will not be adding additional through lanes to the corridor; there will still be the two existing through lanes in each direction north and south of the project area.

Auxiliary lanes provide drivers more time to merge, improving mobility while reducing crashes. Wider shoulders provide space for disabled vehicles to clear the highway safely and give emergency service vehicles quicker access to incidents. In total, the project improvements are expected to reduce crashes by up to 50% and save drivers nearly 2.5 million hours of travel time a year.

To learn more about expected changes in highway width at multiple locations throughout the project area, view our Highway Width Fact Sheet. 

ODOT owns most of the land needed to expand the highway at locations where widening is required. There are several affected private properties that will likely be needed for purposes of construction. ODOT would purchase these properties from the owners and any affected businesses would be fully compensated and relocated under the federal Uniform Act. 

Click here to view a visual representation of the proposed project design.

ODOT works collaboratively with Portland Public Schools (PPS) to keep the school district apprised of the latest data and developments regarding the project.

PPS is leading a separate effort to relocate Harriet Tubman Middle School to a new location in the area and away from the I-5 corridor. This move is not an outcome of the I-5 Rose Quarter Improvement Project; the planned move came about because $120 million in funding for relocating the school was approved by the state legislature. Although ODOT is not directly involved in this effort, we support PPS’s process to address concerns related to the school being adjacent to I-5. PPS is exploring possible new locations and has the latest information.