Knik Arm Bridge
Encyclopedia
Cook Inlet
Cook Inlet stretches from the Gulf of Alaska to Anchorage in south-central Alaska. Cook Inlet branches into the Knik Arm and Turnagain Arm at its northern end, almost surrounding Anchorage....
, north of Anchorage, Alaska
Anchorage, Alaska
Anchorage is a unified home rule municipality in the southcentral part of the U.S. state of Alaska. It is the northernmost major city in the United States...
. The project has also been referred to as "Don Young's Way", after Alaskan Congressman Don Young
Don Young
Donald Edwin "Don" Young is the U.S. Representative for , serving since 1973. He is a member of the Republican Party.Young is the 6th most senior U.S. Representative and the 2nd most senior Republican Representative, as well as the 2nd most senior Republican in Congress as a whole...
who strongly supported the project when he was Chair of the House Transportation Committee. Like the canceled Gravina Island Bridge
Gravina Island Bridge
The Gravina Island Bridge, commonly referred to as the "Bridge to Nowhere", was a proposed bridge to replace the ferry that currently connects the town of Ketchikan, Alaska, with Gravina Island, an island which contains the Ketchikan International Airport as well as 50 residents. The bridge was...
to which its funding has been linked, it has also been referred to as another Alaskan "Bridge to Nowhere".
The bridge would expand the commuter belt for Anchorage, Alaska's largest city, by cutting an hour or more from journeys from the southern part of the Matanuska/Susitna Valley (Mat-Su). The southern part of the Mat-Su currently has very few inhabitants; a justification critics cite for calling the project a "Bridge to Nowhere." Proponents say the bridge would stimulate new housing construction in Mat-Su. It would also provide an alternate route from Anchorage to Wasilla. Cost estimates for the bridge vary wildly; more conservative estimates put the cost as high as $1.5 billion. Opponents suggest that a proposed Knik Arm ferry
Knik Arm ferry
The proposed Knik Arm ferry or Cook Inlet ferry, christened the M/V Susitna would be a year-round passenger and auto ferry across Knik Arm between Anchorage and Point MacKenzie in Alaska. The project is expected to cost $44 million, a fraction of the cost of the more controversial proposed Knik...
is a more cost-effective solution. The ice-breaking ferry, partially funded by the U.S. Navy, was completed and christened the M/V Susitna in June of 2010. A terminal on the Mat-Su side has also been completed, but as of September 2011, the ferry is berthed in storage and the project is on hold pending resolution of disputes about where to build the dock on the Anchorage side.
Idea
The idea of a bridge or causeway across Knik Arm was first envisioned sometime between 1955 and 1957 by a group of Anchorage businessmen. At that time, the cost estimate was $25 million ($194 million in 2008 dollars). The development of Seward's SuccessSeward's Success, Alaska
Seward's Success was an unbuilt planned community proposed for construction in Point MacKenzie, north of Anchorage, Alaska, United States. To be built across the Knik Arm, the megaproject gained a degree of international notoriety as it was to have been climate-controlled, completely enclosed with...
in the late-1960s called for the development of both an aerial tramway
Aerial tramway
An aerial tramway , cable car , ropeway or aerial tram is a type of aerial lift which uses one or two stationary ropes for support while a third moving rope provides propulsion...
and monorail
Monorail
A monorail is a rail-based transportation system based on a single rail, which acts as its sole support and its guideway. The term is also used variously to describe the beam of the system, or the vehicles traveling on such a beam or track...
in spanning the Knik Arm. Over the decades, the idea has been studied repeatedly, including the concept of a Turnagain Arm bridge on the opposite side of Anchorage. The current round of studies were conducted under the jurisdiction of the Knik Arm Bridge And Toll Authority or KABATA, created by the Alaska Legislature
Alaska Legislature
The Alaska Legislature is the state legislature of the U.S. state of Alaska. It is a bicameral institution, consisting of the lower Alaska House of Representatives, with 40 members, and the upper house Alaska Senate, with 20 members...
in 2003 to develop a method of construction financing and of operation and maintenance of the bridge once constructed.
Criticism and controversy
Elmendorf Air Force Base
Joint Base Elmendorf-Richardson is a United States military facility adjacent to Anchorage, the largest city in Alaska. It is an amalgamation of the former United States Air Force Elmendorf Air Force Base and the United States Army Fort Richardson, which were merged in 2010.-Overview:The...
or Fort Richardson land, and insist that this would pose a security risk. Interconnecting with existing Anchorage freeways and other arteries presents an additional challenge, because various neighborhoods, commercial areas, and industrial areas lie between the U.S. Air Force and Army land and the existing transportation infrastructure.
The Knik Arm Bridge and Toll Authority (KABATA) came under scrutiny in September 2006 when reports surfaced that its lead staff had received 20% to 30% raises at a secret board meeting in August, raising to a typical salary of $130,000 per year. Other more recent criticism is that the 14 minute video produced by KABATA for $57,390 in addition to providing a very rosy picture of the "future", may be improper use of state funds for promotion, or public relations.
Former Governor Sarah Palin
Sarah Palin
Sarah Louise Palin is an American politician, commentator and author. As the Republican Party nominee for Vice President in the 2008 presidential election, she was the first Alaskan on the national ticket of a major party and first Republican woman nominated for the vice-presidency.She was...
has been criticized for supporting the project, with one attorney for an environmentalist group suggesting she only supports it because it serves the area that she comes from. Palin's running mate in the 2008 presidential election John McCain
John McCain
John Sidney McCain III is the senior United States Senator from Arizona. He was the Republican nominee for president in the 2008 United States election....
opposes the bridge, calling the bill funding it and the Gravina Bridge a "monstrosity" that was "terrifying in its fiscal consequences".
Support
Supporters of the bridge, which is popular with some developers, argue the bridge would be two miles long, and would allow the population of Anchorage to expand into the Point MacKenzie area. The approach road and connectors, along with the bridge total about 10 miles from Downtown Anchorage, about the same commuting distance as other available land in Anchorage. The residents of the Matanuska/Susitna Valley currently have only a single road to get to and from Anchorage and points south. The Parks HighwayGeorge Parks Highway
The George Parks Highway , usually called simply the Parks Highway, runs 323 miles from the Glenn Highway 35 miles north of Anchorage to Fairbanks in the Alaska Interior...
which runs through Willow, Houston and Wasilla, joins the Glenn Highway
Glenn Highway
-References:* Pasch, A. D., K. C. May. 2001. Taphonomy and paleoenvironment of hadrosaur from the Matanuska Formation in South-Central Alaska. In: Mesozioc Vertebrate Life. Ed.s Tanke, D. H., Carpenter, K., Skrepnick, M. W. Indiana University Press. Pages 219-236.-External links:**...
, which continues along a strip of land between Chugach State Park
Chugach State Park
Chugach State Park is a 495,204-acre state park in the Municipality of Anchorage in the U.S. state of Alaska. Located in the Chugach Mountains just east of the Anchorage Bowl, it is a very popular recreation destination...
and the military bases north of Anchorage. No other land routes are available between the Valley and Anchorage. If the winding dirt road called the "Burma Road" is expanded and paved, http://www.frontiersman.com/articles/2010/12/21/local_news/doc4d1043c0bffd1759872237.txt the proposed bridge would allow access in a more direct northward route from Anchorage to Houston and Willow. The Knik Arm Bridge and connecting roads would provide a secondary north/south roadway to Wasilla. There is however concern that the only paved connecting road on the Matanuska/Susitna Borough side of the bridge, which is the Knik Goose Bay Road, is presently overcapacity and listed as one of the 4 most dangerous roads in the state. http://www.dot.state.ak.us/stwdplng/hwysafety/safety_corridors.shtml The commuting distance for the vast majority of all existing residents of the Matanuska/Susitna Valley would not be lessened by taking the Knik Arm Bridge, a factor that Bridge critics say make KABATA's current revenue forecasts from the Bridge Tolls overstated. http://www.alaskadispatch.com/article/knik-arm-crossing-bridge-too-far
Defending Knik Arm Bridge spending
In October 2005 Alaska Senator Ted StevensTed Stevens
Theodore Fulton "Ted" Stevens, Sr. was a United States Senator from Alaska, serving from December 24, 1968, until January 3, 2009, and thus the longest-serving Republican senator in history...
opposed diverting Alaska's funding for the Gravina and Knik Arm Bridge funds to Louisiana to repair bridge damage in Hurricane Katrina
Hurricane Katrina
Hurricane Katrina of the 2005 Atlantic hurricane season was a powerful Atlantic hurricane. It is the costliest natural disaster, as well as one of the five deadliest hurricanes, in the history of the United States. Among recorded Atlantic hurricanes, it was the sixth strongest overall...
. In his speech on the senate floor, Stevens threatened to quit Congress if the funds were removed from his state. Republicans
Republican Party (United States)
The Republican Party is one of the two major contemporary political parties in the United States, along with the Democratic Party. Founded by anti-slavery expansion activists in 1854, it is often called the GOP . The party's platform generally reflects American conservatism in the U.S...
in Congress
United States Congress
The United States Congress is the bicameral legislature of the federal government of the United States, consisting of the Senate and the House of Representatives. The Congress meets in the United States Capitol in Washington, D.C....
dropped the specific allocation for the two bridges, allowing Alaska to apply the money to current transportation projects. Governor Frank Murkowski
Frank Murkowski
Francis Hughes Murkowski is an American politician and a member of the Republican Party. He was a United States Senator from Alaska from 1981 until 2002 and the eighth Governor of Alaska from 2002 until 2006.- Early life and career :...
planned to fully fund both bridges: "I am proposing we spend the maximum allowed."
As of mid-2006, Rep. Mark Steven Kirk (R-IL) proposed an amendment disallowing federal funds from being allocated to the bridge project. The amendment passed the House
United States House of Representatives
The United States House of Representatives is one of the two Houses of the United States Congress, the bicameral legislature which also includes the Senate.The composition and powers of the House are established in Article One of the Constitution...
in short order, but was held up in the Senate
United States Senate
The United States Senate is the upper house of the bicameral legislature of the United States, and together with the United States House of Representatives comprises the United States Congress. The composition and powers of the Senate are established in Article One of the U.S. Constitution. Each...
. According to the Alaska DOT, Alaska
Alaska
Alaska is the largest state in the United States by area. It is situated in the northwest extremity of the North American continent, with Canada to the east, the Arctic Ocean to the north, and the Pacific Ocean to the west and south, with Russia further west across the Bering Strait...
is one of only two states in the nation to not have a state-funded transportation improvement capital program. Gov. Murkowski
Frank Murkowski
Francis Hughes Murkowski is an American politician and a member of the Republican Party. He was a United States Senator from Alaska from 1981 until 2002 and the eighth Governor of Alaska from 2002 until 2006.- Early life and career :...
signed into law a capital budget which contained start-up amounts for both the Knik Arm Bridge and the Gravina Island Bridge (the latter was canceled after a Congressional earmark
Earmark
Earmark may refer to:*Earmark , cuts or marks in the ears of animals made to show ownership*Earmark , a legislative provision that directs funds to be spent on specific projects...
was stripped).
Delay and lawsuit
In 2009, an Anchorage transportation policy committee decided to postpone the project and remove it from Anchorage's short term transportation plan until 2018. The cities of HoustonHouston, Alaska
Houston is a city in Matanuska-Susitna Borough, Alaska, United States. It is part of the Anchorage, Alaska Metropolitan Statistical Area. The population was 1,202 at the 2000 census.-Geography:Houston is located at ....
and Wasilla responded with a lawsuit claiming the committee did not have the authority to delay the project without consulting them. The lawsuit, which involved one branch of the Alaska State Department of Transportation and Public Facilities (KABATA) suing another State DOT/PF/Municipal entity (Anchorage Metropolitan Area Transportation Solutions)AMATS, so 2 DOT/PF lawyers from the same office eventually came to a settlement, where neither side admitted fault, but the public process that removed it from the short term plan started over again. In March 2010, the AMATS Policy Committee with new members, reversed their previous decision and re-instated the bridge into the short term transportation plan. http://www.adn.com/2010/03/25/1199730/knik-arm-bridge-stays-in-short.html
Received "Record of Decision" from Federal Highways Administration
In December 2010 the FHWA issued a "Record of Decision" accepting the Environmental Impact Statement, after over 7 years and approximately $53 Million spent on studies, preliminary designs, public relations and cost estimating. http://www.adn.com/2010/12/15/1606454/knik-bridge-route-okd-questions.html KABATA has stated that they have asked their Toll and Revenue Consultant Wilbur Smith Associates http://www.wilbursmith.com/index.htm to re-visit their revenue and toll forecasts to reflect conditions that have changed since 2005, including revised population estimates for the Matanuska Susitna Borough by the University of Alaska Anchorage's Institute for Social and Economic Research (ISER) http://www.iser.uaa.alaska.edu/ that are as much as 50% lower than those forecasts used in the EIS to show that the Toll Bridge was "financially feasible". While Wilbur Smith Associates generally has a good track record in their transportation forecasts, the Toll Revenue forecast that they produced for Alaska's Whittier Tunnel Anton Anderson Memorial TunnelAnton Anderson Memorial Tunnel
The Anton Anderson Memorial Tunnel is a tunnel through Maynard Mountain in the U.S. state of Alaska. It links the Seward Highway south of Anchorage at the former town of Portage with the relatively isolated community of Whittier, a port for the Alaska Marine Highway...
was overly optimistic, and approximately $2 Million in shortfalls between annual toll revenues and operation and maintenance is made up by the State every year.
New Legislative Action in 2011
In February 2011, Alaska State Senator Linda Menard, who also is a non-voting member of KABATA's Board of Directors, introduce 2 bills that substantially change the way that the Knik Arm Bridge is proposed to be financed. After years of promising that the bridge will not require any further state or federal funds other than those already set aside, Senate Bill 079 http://www.legis.state.ak.us/basis/get_bill.asp?session=27&bill=SB79 sets aside $150 Million into a "reserve fund",paid for out of the State General Funds to cover the estimated deficits for the first 3 years. http://www.adn.com/2011/02/12/1699393/supporters-seek-150m-for-knik.html Senator Menard's Senate Bill 080 says that, contrary to KABATA's original statute, KABATA bonds will now be "obligations of the state." http://www.legis.state.ak.us/basis/get_bill.asp?session=27&bill=SB80As the Senate bills and companion house bills work their way through the legislative process, http://www.adn.com/2011/02/15/1705278/bridge-request-gets-cool-reaction.html
it is not clear whether or not KABATA will have their new toll revenue forecast from Wilbur Smith Associates before the legislature needs to make their decisions on SB 079 and SB 080. Those forecasts will be essential to see what the proposed toll cost will be, the estimated revenues, and how long the estimated deficits between toll revenues, operations, maintenance, and debt service on the construction bonds will extend, and when the $150 Million will be repaid to the state. KABATA states that the $150 Million reserve fund will eventually be repaid, but their CFO Kevin Hemenway tell the Legislature's transportation committees, though, that if the reserve fund dropped far enough "it would be subject to appropriation for replenishment." http://www.adn.com/2011/02/12/1699393/supporters-seek-150m-for-knik.html
