Travelers and the community have their say about congestion pricing in the Portland metropolitan area
Participants agree traffic is a problem, but they have questions and concerns about potential solutions.
In response to questions about how to design a congestion pricing project that can work for the Portland metropolitan area, thousands of people shared their perspectives about traffic and proposed solutions earlier this year.
The Oregon Department of Transportation learned many people view congestion as a problem in the Portland metropolitan area, including southwest Washington. The proposed use of congestion pricing – a type of tolling where the fee is higher during peak travel times – generated many questions and concerns during online meetings and surveys held June through November. ODOT continues to invite public input on a congestion pricing project to keep the economy and travelers moving.
“As we have discussions with communities, the idea that we need to think holistically about the transportation system comes through again and again. People say they need options and real choices for mobility,” said Lucinda Broussard, ODOT Toll Program Director. “We hear this and will be working closely with our partners to address these needs.”
The Regional Mobility Pricing Project would apply congestion pricing on all lanes of I-5 and I-205 in the Portland metropolitan area to manage traffic congestion and raise revenue for priority transportation projects that improve mobility. The project area begins just south of the Columbia River in Oregon and ends at the Boone Bridge in Wilsonville.
A separate project, the I-205 Toll Project, is under environmental review. This project would apply congestion pricing on vehicles that cross the two I-205 bridges over the Willamette River (Abernethy Bridge) and the Tualatin River to raise revenue for completion of the I-205 Improvements Project, which will eliminate an existing bottleneck along a 7-mile segment of highway.
For both projects, toll rates would vary on a set schedule based on time of day, type of vehicle, and the distance travelled on I-5 and I-205.
Below are some highlights of what we’ve learned so far to inform future planning for the Regional Mobility Pricing Project. A full report on community engagement activities and input from June to September 2021 may be found online.
Community feedback
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2 November workshops with elected officials, business and community leaders, and public agency staff
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6 discussion groups with historically excluded and underserved communities, including Black/African American, Native American, Latin American, Chinese, Vietnamese, and Russian/Slavic communities
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6,500+ responses from 5 surveys
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29 briefings (June-September)
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12 meetings of advisory committees and work groups (June-September)
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300+ emails, letters, web comments (June-September)
Community voices
ODOT partnered with community engagement liaisons to invite feedback through discussion groups with historically excluded and underserved communities. Learn more about what they heard from their communities.
“It was clear that no one wants to pay for being on the road, but it was also clear that people also don’t want to be in traffic.” – Hanna Grishkevich, Slavic Community Engagement Liaison
What we heard
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Participants agree traffic is a problem, and COVID has not significantly changed travel. Over 2,000 survey responses (85%) think traffic is a problem or somewhat of a problem in the Portland metropolitan area. Nearly 1,800 responses (69%) identified traveling the same or more since the rise of the pandemic in March 2020.
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Participants have questions about how a toll system can help address congestion and what benefits they would see. People want to know more about the need for transportation funding, how it will be used, if it will benefit travelers, and how congestion pricing will help keep traffic moving. Workshop participants said that if drivers pay tolls, they want to experience travel time reliance and predictability improvements that are worth those costs.
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Participants want to ensure vulnerable populations are not disproportionately impacted by the tolling program. Meeting participants discussed that it was critical to develop a tolling system that doesn’t make existing inequities worse, but rather helps make progress toward regional equity goals. About a third of survey respondents (37%) supported a discounted toll rate for drivers experiencing low incomes and other impacted groups.
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Diversion is a significant concern. Questions about how tolls would impact traffic on local street networks emerged during many discussions, as well as the consequences of traffic diversion related to safety, local businesses, and overall quality of life for residents. While some workshop participants acknowledged that tolling could have a positive impact by keeping vehicles moving on I-5 and I-205, there was concern that if toll rates are too high people might use other routes instead.
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Participants want travel choices. There was support for toll-free travel options, such as toll free routes, lanes or improved transit service. Half of survey respondents (52%) noted that they would consider paying a toll if it would save them 30 minutes of travel time. Participants voiced a need for better alternatives to driving, such as improvements to bike, walk, and transit options. Workshop participants requested more clarity on how these options could be funded through toll revenues.
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