Public invited to open houses to comment on preliminary I-90 corridor designs

ITD will host two open houses next week in Post Falls and Coeur d’Alene to present recommended designs to improve I-90 between the Washington state line and Sherman Avenue in Coeur d’Alene. The ongoing study is funded by the Leading Idaho program.

Each open house will present identical information and designs.

Post Falls

Tuesday, Nov. 1
4 p.m. – 7 p.m.
Red Lion Hotel Templin’s on the River at 414 E 1st Ave

Coeur d’Alene

Wednesday, Nov. 2
4 p.m. – 7 p.m.
Best Western Plus Coeur d’Alene Inn at 506 West Appleway Ave

For those not able to attend either open house, an online option will share the same information and will be available on Nov. 1 at itdprojects.org/i90corridor.

“Since the first stretch of I-90 was built in Kootenai County in 1960, ITD has made some upgrades, but the number of lanes has not changed,” said Erika Bowen, ITD Project Manager. “With traffic currently congested in various parts of the corridor and volumes expected to double by 2045, ITD is studying the interstate to identify improvements to modernize the system, reduce crashes and save drivers time.”

Proposed improvements include adding lanes on I-90, modifying access and upgrading interchanges with impacts to local roads in both cities. Areas with proposed improvements include:

Spokane Street and Seltice Way Interchanges
Northwest Boulevard Interchange
US-95 and Fourth Street Interchanges
Seventh Street Bridge
Sherman Avenue Interchange

Blue and white circular logo for “Leading Idaho” projects sponsored by Governor Little

Following the study and public input, the recommended projects will be prioritized and advanced into design and construction as funding becomes available.

The study is funded with Transportation Expansion and Congestion Mitigation (TECM) funds as part of Governor Little’s Leading Idaho initiative. The program allows ITD to accelerate project timelines to address rapid growth and build critical infrastructure today that would otherwise take many years to fund and build.

The corridor is one of 13 approved TECM corridors in the state. Funding for the future design and construction phases on this corridor will be determined based on project readiness and funding availability. Preliminary estimates value the improvements needed in this corridor at $1 billion to $1.2 billion, which includes design, right-of-way and construction costs. A previously funded project to redesign the SH-41 interchange at I-90 is currently under construction.

To stay up to date on the I-90 corridor project, visit itdprojects.org/i90corridor and sign up for email updates.

SH-3 north of St. Maries reopened with wider, safer shoulders

Fall sunshine on a curve on a widened highway

Earlier today State Highway 3 north of St. Maries reopened with wider, safe shoulders. Traffic had been detoured to Goosehaven Road since work began in April.

Construction widened the highway 11 feet to the east, making room for 11-foot travel lanes and 3-foot shoulders. Guardrail was also added along the east side.

“The people that drive on this road every day had to drive on a really narrow road with no shoulders,” said Phil Lampert, Benewah County Commissioner. “This project makes it safer for everyone in the community and those who visit.”

Projects previously proposed to widen the highway had stalled due to environmental challenges and funding restraints.

“When we sat down with county commissioners three years ago, we heard that the desire for this project had only grown over the years,” said Bill Moad, the Idaho Transportation Board Chair. “After that meeting, we decided to use some of our own state funding to get design started.”

With new funding allocated by the board, design began in April 2020. Typically projects are developed through a seven-year process, but with local stakeholders willing to provide a detour for highway traffic, the project was expedited.

“That was a game changer,” said Jim Thompson, the board member for North Idaho. “There was no way to make these changes and accommodate traffic. Offering a detour showed how invested they were in the project, so we prioritized it.”

The three-mile section of highway cuts through wetlands, complicating any expansion effort. Traditionally, highways are expanded by importing embankment material and building the base outwards, but SH-3 was built on soft soils. Extra weight would collapse the soft soils and cause settlement problems for the highway; expanding outwards would also affect nearby wetlands that would trigger mitigation processes with other agencies. To get the safety improvements built sooner, the team wanted to find a way to avoid enlarging the highway past state property.

“We looked at a few options and using geofoam for the fill inside a wall system gave us an economical, lightweight solution,” said Erica Aamodt, ITD project manager for construction. “Since it can be stacked in blocks on top of each other, the foam would allow for a wider roadway without having to go outside of state-owned land.”

While geofoam has been used for other ITD projects—namely for the Topaz Bridge on U.S. Highway 30 near McCammon—this project uses more of it and over a curving length of three miles. The project was bid for $12.7 million, and work began in April, with contractor Knife River planning to build the project in one season—rather than two—thanks to the availability of a detour.

“Partnership is what ultimately made this project happen,” Aamodt said. “We knew this project would be tough to deliver and inconvenient for drivers and residents with the detour, but we all came together because we knew we could get it done in one season and it’d be worth it.”

Jack Buell, owner of Buell Trucking and a former county commissioner, has long advocated for the project and remembers taking Governor John Evans for a ride on the highway to convince him it needed to be widened.

“The best part is that the State of Idaho decided to fix it, and they fixed it,” Buell said.

Paving begins next week in Bonners Ferry

Milled surface of US-95 about to be paved

Over the next two weeks, US-95 will be paved in Bonners Ferry and the first season of the construction project will be substantially complete between Alderson Lane and Eisenhower Street.

Daytime paving will happen Monday – Thursday (Sept. 12-15), with work focused primarily on the northbound lane as well as some paving on the southbound lane. Access to businesses will be temporarily blocked while paving happens near driveways. The construction team will try to minimize impacts as much as possible. Friday night (Sept. 16) crews will finish paving the center lane. Once paving is complete, workers will adjust the manholes, stripe the highway and open all lanes back up to traffic.

Some work will continue until October to finish landscaping and to replace temporary wood railing near the north end of the project with permanent railing. Through the fall and winter, utilities will continue moving their infrastructure to prepare for the second and final season of work on this project. Next year, work will improve Eisenhower Street to Labrosse Hill Street and is anticipated to take from March to October 2023 to complete.

This project is the next phase of work that originally began in 2018 to rebuild US-95 through town with a continuous center turn lane and pedestrian facilities on both sides. More information is available at

Traffic to shift next week in US-95 work zone at Granite Hill

Aerial view of new pavement over Granite Hill

Traffic will shift early next week at the U.S. Highway 95 work zone at Granite Hill north of Athol. Drivers will be directed onto the newly paved lanes of the highway starting Tuesday, Sept. 13.

“We are very close to being done,” ITD Project Manager Steven Bakker said. “We plan to stop impacting traffic by mid-October.”

Traffic has been running on Mineral Ridge, the new frontage road to the east, since August 2021. The new frontage road to the west, called Vintage Road, will fully open north of Homestead Road roughly one week after the main traffic shift.

Drivers should still plan to slow down in the area as work will continue near the Trails End Road intersection; crews will also install signage, finish landscaping and add rumble strips before the project is complete.

This $21 million project began in fall 2020 and is expected to finish by November, one year ahead of schedule.

Nighttime repairs start again on US-95 Spokane River Bridge

US-95 where it crosses the Spokane River

Work has now been rescheduled to the following week. For the exact start date, drivers should refer to message signs placed on the highway closer to construction or 511.

Nighttime repairs will start again on the U.S. Highway 95 bridge over the Spokane River, with work beginning on Wednesday, Sept. 14. Drivers heading downtown after 7 p.m. over the next two months should plan for congestion.

Last summer crews sealed the driving surface and began work on the railing. This fall crews will replace the railing as well expansion joints that allow the structure to expand and contract with the weather.

“Generally drivers should only have to contend with the shoulders being closed, but there will be a few weeks when the contractor is working on the joints that we’ll also close a lane,” ITD Project Manager Cole Mosman said.

Construction this year will be followed by a larger project in 2023 that will repair the concrete piers and paint the underside of the bridge.

Find live traffic impacts at 511.idaho.gov.

Changes to I-90 work zone between Wallace and Mullan coming next week

View from an overpass of milling on I-90

Next week conditions will change in the I-90 work zone where the freeway is being repaved between Wallace and Mullan, with funding for the project provided by “Leading Idaho.” All traffic will shift from the eastbound lanes to the westbound lanes by the end of the week.

“This roughly marks the halfway point of the project,” ITD Project Manager Cole Mosman said. “We’re keeping traffic to one lane in each direction and moving it to other side of the freeway so we can get to the remaining work.”

Eastbound ramps that were closed with the first phase of paving will now be open, but drivers heading westbound will only be able to get on or off at Exit 62 in Wallace or Exit 69 in Mullan.

“We want to remind drivers to stay engaged, especially through work zones,” Mosman said. “All season long we have seen drivers become impatient and try to pass. Passing isn’t allowed in the work zone and trying to do so can have terrible consequences.”

Construction began in mid-July to repave this 5-mile section. This next phase of work also includes the building of an 85-foot-long wall and fencing at milepost 67 to protect drivers from potential rockfall.

These improvements were added to the project after boulders fell down a steep chute onto the freeway during two separate events in June and November of 2020.

The project was originally scheduled to be constructed in 2024 but was advanced to this summer with funds from Governor Brad Little’s “Leading Idaho” investment, which includes a one-time transfer from the state’s budget surplus of $126 million dedicated in 2021 by the Idaho Legislature.

Work will wrap up in late October.

Other work zones on I-90 include paving near the bottom of Fourth of July Pass, bridge replacements in Kellogg and a range of smaller projects to address bridges, concrete barrier and ramps. Drivers should plan extra time for commuting and check 511.idaho.gov for traffic conditions and restrictions on up to seven planned work zones east of CDA this summer.

Transport of oversized windmill loads through North Idaho to begin next week

More than 80 oversized loads will depart the Port of Lewiston bound for Canada over the next 2.5 months, with the first load scheduled to leave next week. Richards Transportation is in the process of delivering windmill blades to Jenner, Alberta, with the largest loads measuring up to 325 feet long and weighing 137,000 pounds.

“This first load is the only one currently scheduled and will provide an opportunity to refine the transportation plans,” Operations Engineer Jared Hopkins said. “After the initial run, we expect operations to increase in frequency.”

Nine loads will depart each week in groups of three from the Port of Lewiston to travel north on U.S. Highway 95 to Coeur d’Alene before heading east on Interstate 90 into Montana. Three loads are expected to leave every other day, with each individual load departing roughly 30 minutes apart.

Click here to see an oversized windmill load.

Pilot cars will escort each load on the one-night journey, with flaggers in place to close the following intersections:

State Highway 128 and US-12/US-95 in Lewiston
• US-95 and Lincoln Avenue/Walnut Way in Coeur d’Alene
• the I-90 and US-95 interchange in Coeur d’Alene.

Drivers can expect delays as the loads move through these intersections at night. The transportation company arranged for a new on-ramp to help oversized loads make the turn from northbound US-95 onto eastbound I-90 in Coeur d’Alene. This ramp will not be open for other traffic. Traffic on the interstate will be slowed down by pilot cars to allow each load to merge.

Given the length of the loads, navigating to and through Moscow will be especially slow-going and will require significant closures.

The two-lane section of US-95 between Thorn Creek and Moscow will be closed as loads travel through for an estimated 30 minutes each. Timing of the closures will vary but could start around 9 p.m. Traffic will be allowed to pass before each subsequent closure.

“That section of US-95 is windy and narrow, and the loads will not be able to make those turns without taking up part of the oncoming lane, so we are shutting it down,” Hopkins said.

Each night loads depart the port, no parking will be allowed in Moscow starting at 6 p.m. on the following streets:

Washington Street north of the US-95/SH-8 intersection to where southbound and northbound US-95 reconnects at the north end of Moscow.
• Near the Main Street and A Street intersection.

While loads move through Moscow on US-95/Washington Street, traffic will be unable to pass. It could take up to an hour for each load to pass through.

“Given the extreme length of these loads and how narrow the highway section is in Moscow, the transport company will move each load at walking pace with staff on the ground to ensure that nothing next to the road is damaged,” Hopkins said.

Weather may impact the schedule. Traffic impacts will be identified on 511.idaho.gov.

Project starts next week to reduce likelihood of rockfall on US-2 and SH-200

Over the next two months specialized crews will target five locations for rockfall mitigation on two highways near Sandpoint, including U.S. Highway 2 to the west and State Highway 200 to the east.

“At each location, crews will scale the slope, which involves wedging and prying loose rock that has the potential to fall onto the highway,” Project Manager Josh Nisson said. “This project is meant to be proactive, reducing the risk of drivers encountering rocks on the road and bringing it down safely on our own terms.”

The locations to be addressed include:

SH-200 at milepost 41 near Trestle Creek (two sites)
SH-200 at milepost 53 west of Clark Fork
US-2 at milepost 11 between Priest River and Laclede (two sites)

“While they are actively scaling and rocks are falling down towards the highway, we will not let drivers travel underneath,” Nisson said. “They’ll do that for about twenty minutes, let waiting traffic pass through, and then temporarily close the highway again.”

Crews will spend less than two weeks at each location. Drivers should plan for these delays while workers are on site, typically Monday through Friday from 7 a.m. to 5 p.m. Otherwise, all lanes will be open.

Signage at each location will be in place roughly one week before work starts, and drivers are encouraged to check 511.idaho.gov for all impacts before they travel.

First widening project begins on SH-53 near Hauser

The first of several projects to add a center left turn lane to most of State Highway 53 from the Washington state line to Rathdrum begins next week.

“SH-53 serves more than 12,000 vehicles a day, including many drivers who commute between Washington and Idaho,” Project Manager Megan Koski said.

Work over the next two years will focus on a two-mile stretch starting near McGuire Road and continuing through Bruss Road, with additional safety improvements included at the Hauser Laker Road intersection. Two lanes will remain open through construction, but starting Monday, Aug. 22, speed limits will be reduced.

“The goal of this project and future ones is to make the highway safer by providing turn lanes for drivers,” Koski said. “Drivers won’t have to be worried about being rear-ended as they wait to turn left off the highway.”

Right turn lanes and lighting will be installed at the intersections of McGuire Road, North Church Road, Bruss Road and Hauser Lake Road. An acceleration lane at Cloverleaf Road will help drivers get up to speed and merge with eastbound traffic.

“This year, crews will add temporary pavement to the south so that we can maintain traffic as we build the base for the expanded road on the north side of the highway,” Koski said. “Then next spring we’ll pave over that base and open the new lane to traffic.”

Other similar projects are scheduled near Rathdrum in 2023 and state line in 2027. A maintenance project in late September will resurface patches within the first two miles near the state line at night to keep it in acceptable conditions until the 2027 project.

Since this project overlaps with future plans to build an interchange at Pleasant View Road in 2028, minimal improvements will be constructed near the intersections of Pleasant View Road and Hauser Lake Road at this time.

The department plans to fund a project at the next opportunity to build similar improvements to the four miles between Bruss Road and Latah Street.

Drivers are encouraged to check live traffic conditions at 511.idaho.gov.

Construction begins Sunday night on US-95 near Sagle

US-95_Lakeshore Drive_PH 2 after striping_spring 2022

The Idaho Transportation Department is beginning the second phase of construction on U.S. Highway 95 between Sagle Road and Lakeshore Drive to increase safety for drivers on the highway and reduce delays for drivers turning onto it. Impacts to traffic will begin during the evening hours of Sunday, August 14.

For approximately two weeks, crews will work at night to repave US-95 from Pit Road in Sagle to the Long Bridge. Motorists can expect the following impacts:

Flaggers will control one lane of alternating traffic on US-95 Sunday through Thursday from 7 p.m. to 5 a.m.
Nighttime lane closures will intermittently affect the Long Bridge
Speed limits lowered to 45 mph
Up to 15-minute delays
For live traffic impacts, check 511.idaho.gov

“The highway needs to be resurfaced this fall to avoid severe potholes in the winter,” ITD Project Manager Phil Stout said.

Work during this phase also includes building a U-turn for drivers and installing a signal at Sagle Road.

After the Labor Day weekend, crews will begin building a U-turn as an option for drivers to use when trying to head northbound on US-95 from Lakeshore Drive. The U-turn will be constructed northeast of Bottle Bay Road. Work will take place during the day, and one lane will remain open in each direction.

“Due to long lead times on some key materials, parts of the project will likely not be finished until the spring, including opening up the U-turn for traffic,” Stout said.

Sagle Road improvements are planned to start in mid-October. Drivers on US-95 will not be able to turn east onto Sagle Road, and westbound drivers on Sagle Road will not be able access the highway. Instead, they will be temporarily detoured to Monarch Road for up to one month.

“Our goal is to have the detour in place only as long as necessary, so we have put an incentive in the contract to encourage that work to be completed early,” Stout said.

Work this year will realign the intersection, add turning lanes and prepare for signal installation next spring.

Improvements and anticipated impacts during construction were presented at an open house held in April.

Visit the website at itdprojects.org/us95lakeshoredrive to sign up for construction updates and for more information.