Replacement of Portland's Sellwood Bridge and overhauls of several long standing roadway problems statewide gain real momentum today as Gov. Ted Kulongoski signs into law the biggest transportation spending measure in Oregon history.

Drivers going to the coast along Oregon 99W will get a new route to bypass Newberg and Dundee. In eastern Oregon's Baker City, rebuilding Chandler Lane near Interstate 84 will open a key freight route and ease traffic congestion. In southern Oregon, Roseburg's route to the coast will become safer with a project to straighten Oregon 42 near the Douglas-Coos county line.

Most projects need federal funding as well for completion, but Oregon's part is sealed today with the state's commitment to spend $300 million a year to fix its decrepit roadways and bridges.

New fees come first, however. Motorists will see the effects of the law in October, when higher vehicle registration fees kick in, and by January 2011, when a 6 cent per gallon gas tax goes into effect. Because the fees are eased in, it could take a year or more to see any additional pavement laid from money the bill generates.

But the final approval of House Bill 2001 shows massive political will to address a transportation system that has suffered from deferred maintenance and underinvestment for more than a decade. Most significantly, it will boost gas taxes for the first time since 1993, something that was considered a political third rail since voters rejected a gas tax increase in 1999.