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We will not have HSR until ...
... Oregon decides that we need dedicated rail capacity. We are not practicing what we preach. Washington is years ahead of us. We spend all of our State transportation costs on roads that very few people use. We are a big state with many miles of paved roads over many rivers; hills, and over many ranges.
I think the ODOT needs to spend some of their research cash on the cheapest, smoothest , greenish, road design so all county roads can start implementing less costly road maintenance budgets. (Think gravel, sand, and strong, porous brick to move the water off the surface fast. Maintenance on bricks is much cheaper than repaving. Larger trucks are then banned on these county roads and smaller delivery trucks are used on the county roads. More jobs for trucking industry!!! Less money spend on supporting the big rigs.)
I think each region (e.g., Willamette Valley, Southeast Oregon) will need to decide what is more important (having pavement everywhere or moving the most people and goods). The State needs to understand that one size doesn't fit all. The planners and management at ODOT might talk about high capacity BUT THEY DO NOT PRACTICE IT. Example of this was when I went to some of the early Columbia River Crossing meeting and spoke about High Speed Rail (HSR) and moving the corridor to the Eastbank (no turns or Willamette River Crossings) and incorporating HSR into the design so we wouldn't have to spend billions later to get the dedicated corridor. I was listened to and then they moved on without much discussion at all. HSR at CRC was dropped early.
What bad planning and vision from my point of view. ODOT is very, very, locked into their view of the World and they know what is best for their citizens. It is a good old boys network base only on road construction with asphalt and concrete.
eP
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