Groundbreaking event kicks off construction of the Portland-Milwaukie light rail bridge

After nearly a decade of planning and community outreach, project partners celebrated the start of construction on the Portland-Milwaukie Light Rail Bridge in Oregon on June 30. The bridge is the first to be built over the Willamette River in more than 40 years. It is also the first of its kind, with light rail, buses, a future Portland streetcar and wide bike and pedestrian paths. No private vehicles will be allowed. The bridge alignment is SW Porter Street on the west side and SE Sherman Street on the east side. U.S. Representatives Earl Blumenauer and Kurt Schrader attended the event along with other project partners. "This project will continue our region's proactive approach to transportation," said Rep. Blumenauer. "It provides thousands of jobs while improving connections for Southeast Portland and North Clackamas County. I applaud TriMet and our region for getting this project moving and I'm eager to see it get underway." "The bridge and the overall project will link east and west, improve and expand transit, and most importantly, create up to 14,000 jobs when we most need them," said TriMet General Manager Neil McFarlane. The PMLR project is the second MAX extension into Clackamas County after the MAX Green Line opened in 2009. The 7.3-mile project is the region's sixth MAX construction project to be built and extends from the terminus of the MAX Green and Yellow lines at Portland State University to South Waterfront, Southeast Portland, Milwaukie and Park Avenue in Clackamas County. The project includes 10 stations and will create up to 14,000 direct and indirect jobs and generate up to $573 million in personal earnings. Federal funds will pay for half of the $1.49 billion project; state and local partners are funding the balance. TriMet's share is less than five percent of the project budget and will not be needed until FY2013. The line is set to open in September 2015. The overall project is still in the final design phase. The Federal Transit Administration has approved early construction work on the bridge, as construction in the Willamette River is limited due to migrating fish. The "fish window" allows in-river work from July 1 through October 31 each year. Construction of the bridge begins Friday, July 1.