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Governor proposes $3.1 billion in transportation bonds focused on preservation, paving and ferries
Summary
The governor's supplemental transportation budget would bond $3.1 billion to fund bridge preservation, paving, ferries and other maintenance needs; WSDOT and OFM staff presented program breakdowns and timing and answered commissioners' questions.
Megan Cotton, the governor's senior policy adviser on transportation, and a substitute from the Office of Financial Management presented the governor's supplemental transportation proposal and answered commissioners' questions. They described a $16.8 billion total transportation portfolio and a proposed $3.1 billion bonding package aimed at preservation and targeted investments.
The presenters said the governor's bond proposal would break out roughly $1.1 billion for bridges, $161 million for the coming summer paving season (to add about 600 lane miles), approximately $756 million over 10 years to expand paving capacity (roughly 2,100 additional lane miles), $160 million for other highway activities (slope stabilization, culverts), $240 million for maintenance activities (including encampment-related costs and third-party damage recovery), and $1.1 billion for ferries (to buy three additional ferries and fund preservation work on older vessels). Staff described ferry preservation contracts with local shipyards and emphasized the fragility of the existing ferry fleet.
Presenters also highlighted other elements of the supplemental package: investments to finish a trooper radio replacement and network upgrades for safety, $1.6 million for a Department of Licensing mobile office to serve rural communities, call-center modernization and language-access investments, and $15 million to support dredging on the Columbia and Lower Columbia River as matching funds for federal dollars and Oregon's commitment.
Commissioners generally welcomed the focus on preservation and on ferries and asked questions about regional mobility grants and the federal-state roles on the Columbia River channel maintenance. The presentation and responses will inform commission oversight and follow-up with the legislature as the supplemental budget moves through the session.
