I am appalled, disgusted, yet sadly unsurprised by the elitist, "moral" outrage of the groups opposing the I-5 expansion. Two points to address.

One, the argument that people should live close to their work: Take off your rich-person, rose-colored goggles. Almost everybody who drives I-5 would love to live close to work but Portland's outrageous housing prices make that an impossible pipe-dream for most. The only people who can afford to do so are rich people, or those who have lived in Portland for a long time before housing skyrocketed. You want to punish poor people twice, by making them sit through a nightmare commute and make them pay for it with the extra gas money spent and tolling? Real nice.

Two, traffic is not going away no matter how many bike lanes you create. I-5 is a major freeway, one of the biggest freight corridors in the United States, and it runs right by sporting and events venues. Freight cannot be hauled by bike, nor can fans from other cities rely on public transportation to get them to the events they want to see.

Conclusion: Quit hating poor people. Also, focus your attention on solutions that will actually help relieve congestion, like alternatives to semis for moving goods. Lord knows I would like to see fewer semis on the road. Or perhaps work on Portland rezoning urban density in-fill and affordable housing for close-in neighborhoods, instead of North Portland.

Kate Stoumen, North Portland