Support lines up for 6-lane span to replace 520 floating bridge

OLYMPIA — Legislative leaders in the House and the Senate are apparently falling in line with the governor's call to replace the 520 floating bridge with a new six-lane span over Lake Washington.

The House Transportation Committee on Friday approved a bill, dealing with mediation for the project, that calls for a new bridge with four general-purpose lanes and two car-pool lanes.

The idea is to avoid the fight that happened with the Alaskan Way Viaduct. Saying upfront how many lanes the bridge will have should help, said House Transportation Chairwoman Judy Clibborn, D-Mercer Island.

Senate Transportation Committee Chairwoman Mary Margaret Haugen, D-Camano Island, agreed with the move.

"We don't want to be in the same position we were with the viaduct, where you don't know what you're doing," Haugen said. "It helps us to move forward."

The viaduct-replacement project was stalled for months by a feud between state lawmakers and city officials over whether to replace the structure with a tunnel or another elevated highway.

They agreed earlier this month to move ahead with parts of the project and continue negotiations about a one-mile section along the downtown waterfront.

Rep Jamie Pedersen, D-Seattle, said he's OK with saying the 520 bridge will be six lanes, but it won't stop people from fighting over it. Pedersen represents the 43rd District, which includes neighborhoods near the project's west end.

Gov. Christine Gregoire in December said that a replacement should have four general-purpose lanes and two high-occupancy-vehicle (HOV) lanes, for a total of six.

The governor said a larger eight-lane option would cause traffic jams at either end and disturb more wetlands. And a four-lane bridge, lacking HOV lanes, would not encourage buses and car pools, she said.

A Seattle activist group is backing a four-lane span, which the group says would avoid visual blight and fight global warming by limiting how many cars enter the city.

The bill passed by the transportation committee Friday — Senate Bill 6099 — also requires the state to hire a mediator to work with neighborhoods to find ways to address such issues as reducing noise, handling increased traffic and making the new Evergreen Point Floating Bridge more attractive.

The bill already has passed the Senate but was amended to include the language about a six-lane bridge. It now has to go through the House and back to the Senate for approval.

An estimated $4.4 billion to $5.3 billion is needed to build a six-lane bridge to replace the four-lane span constructed in 1963. Engineers consider the 520 bridge as vulnerable as the earthquake-damaged viaduct.

Andrew Garber: 360-943-9882 or agarber@seattletimes.com