| I-205 | |||
| Get started | Tualatin | ||
| End | Salmon Creek | ||
| Length | 37 mi | ||
| Length | 60 km | ||
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Interstate 205 or I -205 is an Interstate Highway in the US states of Oregon and Washington. The highway forms a bypass along the eastern side of the Portland metropolitan area. I-205 is 60 kilometers long, of which 43 kilometers in Oregon and 17 kilometers in Washington.
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Travel directions
Portland I-205.
Oregon
In Tualatin, a suburb of 26,000, I-205 branches off from Interstate 5, which continues through downtown Portland. The highway has 2×2 lanes with ample space in the central reservation. The road leads through the city’s forested southeastern suburbs, such as West Linn and Oregon City. From the highway, Mount Hood is visible in the distance. The Abernethy Bridge, which has 2×3 lanes, crosses the River Willamette, which flows through the city. Then the highway turns north, passing through some eastern suburbs, none of which are very large. After about 20 kilometers you arrive in the more densely built-up Portlandyourself. The road network consists of a partially interrupted grid system. On the east side of Portland, one crosses Interstate 84, which leads to Boise, Idaho, and Salt Lake City, Utah, hundreds of miles to the east. A rail connection will then run in the central reservation, with stations in the central reservation. Via the Glenn L. Jackson Memorial Bridge one crosses the three kilometer wide Columbia River in two stages. This bridge has 2×4 lanes.
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Washington
Immediately after the bridge you cross the SR-14, the Louis and Clark Freeway. It then passes through Vancouver, Portland ‘s largest suburb of 158,000, and also functions as a center on the Washington side of the Columbia. The highway will then have 2×3 lanes. In Salmon Creek, I – 205 then rejoins Interstate 5 towards Seattle.
History
I-205 at West Linn.
Plans for an eastern bypass of the City of Portland were being developed before World War II, the City of Portland and Multnomah County had contracted famed New York City road builder Robert Moses to review Portland’s road plan. Moses’ Portland Improvement report was presented in 1943. One of the recommendations was an eastern bypass to be developed as a scenic route, modeled after the parkways around New York City.
In 1955, the Oregon State Highway Department planned a network of freeways around Portland, connecting to then newly opened I-5 south and I-84 east of Portland. Two projects merged into one Portland bypass and was designated I-205, the ‘East Portland Freeway’ in 1966. In 1968, the first contract was awarded to build the bridge over the Willamette River in Oregon City, which opened on May 28, 1970. The southern portion of I-205, between I-5 and Sunnyside Road, was constructed in the early 1970s and was largely completed by 1974. Construction of I-205 would have cost $130 million at the time, with an estimate of $270 million for the construction of the rest of I-205 through eastern Portland.
Construction of I-205 further north met strong opposition from environmental groups and local residents. The section through the already more urbanized Multnomah County was particularly controversial, and in 1974 Multnomah County withdrew its approval for the route and wanted to downsize the highway from eight to four lanes. In 1975 an agreement was reached on the construction of the rest of I-205, with bus lanes, fewer lanes and fewer connections to the secondary road network. The original plan provided for eight connections over a distance of 15 kilometres, the new plan for only three connections. Construction resumed in 1978 and the bridge opened over the Columbia River into Washington in December 1982. I-205 was finally completed in 1983.
Future
It is planned to widen I-205 through Oregon City to 2×3 lanes. It is planned to charge a toll to fund the widening.
Traffic intensities
Every day, 89,000 vehicles travel from the starting point on I-5 at Tualatin, rising to 136,000 vehicles at Oregon City and 156,000 vehicles south of US 26 in Portland. The busiest part is between US 26 and I-84 with 172,000 vehicles per day, this is also the busiest road section in the state of Oregon. North of I-84, 161,000 vehicles per day, decreasing slightly to 155,000 vehicles per day on the bridge over the Columbia River to Washington.
Congestion
I-205 is very sensitive to traffic, making it almost unsuitable as a bypass of Portland for through traffic. There is a lot of employment in the western suburbs, but there is a lack of good east-west connections except for the part of I-205 between I-5 and Oregon City, which has only 2×2 lanes.
