Category: North

COEUR d’ALENE – Work began today (Thursday, Feb. 14) at 5 a.m. on Interstate 90 emergency repairs from milepost 48-49 near Kellogg.

Crews are performing a mill and inlay (adding layers of asphalt to create a smoother driving surface) on the pavement in both the east- and westbound lanes of the freeway to correct “dips” in the pavement that appeared during the last week and forced a speed-limit reduction from 75 mph to 45 mph.

The work will be done on one lane of each section (eastbound and westbound) at a time, with traffic shifted over to the other lane. Work on this temporary fix is expected to be completed by 7 p.m. this evening.

However, further work may be necessary throughout the winter to correct the dipping until a more permanent repair can be done this spring/summer.

The Idaho Transportation Department is coordinating with other agencies in the area to investigate the cause of the damage and to develop a long-term fix for the depressions.

The speed limit also will be evaluated to increase it back to as near 75 mph as is safely possible.

The mill and inlay is being completed by Interstate Concrete and Asphalt.

A car loses snow from its roof as it drives over the dip on I-90 near Kellogg.

 

Drivers are advised to reduce speeds on Interstate 90 near Kellogg due to a dip in the road.

Watch this video to see vehicles drive over the dip.

New signage near milepost 48.6 encourages drivers to drop from 75 mph to 45 mph in the area of the depression. Drivers should pay attention to signage as speed limits may change in accordance with roadway conditions.

The depression appears to be caused by water running under the roadway. The Idaho Transportation Department is monitoring the area and investigating the source of the water to develop a long-term solution. Roadway issues like this typically require deep excavation and reconstruction of the road base.

ITD is exploring options to temporarily fill in the dip as early as next week. In the meantime, drivers are encouraged to reduce their speeds.

Construction to replace the bridge over Strong Creek on the business route of Idaho Highway 200 will start the last week of February.

Work is expected to last until late June.  During that time, the highway will be shut down completely with a detour route posted.

Pedestrian access may be provided depending upon the contractor’s resources. Toward the end of construction, flaggers may be able to allow alternating, one-way traffic over the structure.

Workers are expected to be on site during the day throughout the week, though activity over the weekends is allowed.

A meeting will be held at the Memorial Community Center in Hope on Tuesday, February 12 from 5 p.m. to 7 p.m. It will be primarily for emergency services, but all members of the public are welcome to stop by at any time to ask questions.

The new structure will feature a concrete sidewalk with accessible ramps.

For more information, visit the project website.

Following a public meeting in November 2018, the Idaho Transportation Department developed a different alternative for the Interstate 90 and Idaho Highway 41 interchange in Post Falls.

The new design merges the advantages of the two alternatives that were developed by a special planning team and presented to the public last fall.

Called an offset single-point urban interchange (SPUI), it features a SPUI shifted north of the interstate, eliminating the extensive impacts to Seltice Way and other local roads that were considered in the previous alternatives. The highway will still move to the west to better accommodate the ramps, and after passing under the interstate, connects to Seltice Way at Herborn Place.

The offset SPUI eliminates the loop ramp at the westbound exit on I-90, a design element that was well-received in the original SPUI design.

Construction costs are estimated to be $39 million, compared to the estimated $65 million for the earlier SPUI design and the $31 million for the half-diamond design.

“People who spoke with us at the meeting or left a comment provided us with valuable feedback that we tried to integrate in this alternative,” project manager Shannon Stein said. “This design achieves the efficiencies of a SPUI interchange and excellent compatibility for future expansion and at a lower cost.”

Members of the public will get a chance to formally comment on the selected design later this year. The project is scheduled to be constructed in 2023. To view other details about the proposed improvements, visit the project website.

The St. Maries Railroad Bridge on Idaho Highway 3 is now open to two-way traffic, meaning drivers will no longer need to detour through town.

Crews have also suspended work on the bridge on ID-3 over the river for the winter to ensure the highest quality completed project. Other tasks that are not weather dependent will continue.

Most other traffic and parking situations have returned to how they before construction, specifically:

• A four-way stop at ID-3 and ID-5.
• Two-way traffic on both 10^th and 11^th Streets north of Main Avenue.
• NO four-way stop at Main Avenue and 10^th Street.
• The intersection at 10^th Street and Railroad Avenue will be placed back into the original configuration of stop signs on 10^th Street in both direction and free-flowing traffic on Railroad Avenue.

Traffic patterns on the river bridge will continue to function as they have been–two-way traffic shifted to the west side of the structure. In coordination with this work, the south end of Meadowhurst Drive will continue to be closed, and Riverside Avenue under the bridge will be intermittently closed as needed for construction. These impacts will be in place through completion of construction.

Pedestrian access across the river bridge will also remain the same: a sidewalk on the west side of the river bridge connects to a pedestrian crossing over Railroad Avenue and to the new sidewalk on the railroad bridge.

Upon completion in early summer 2019, both bridges will include one lane in each direction with a shoulder and sidewalk on each side. Work also includes reconstructing the highway to match the upgraded bridges, replacing guardrail and signs in several locations and improving the adjoining intersections.

Check 511 for traffic impacts or visit the “Projects” tab at itd.idaho.gov/d1 for more information.

Members of the public are also invited to contact the project team by calling the project hotline at 208-292-8515 or by emailing Gemma Puddy at gpuddy@langdongroupinc.com.

Every holiday season, law enforcement agencies place extra officers on the roads to patrol communities to prevent impaired driving. This year, six agencies in Kootenai County have joined forces in memory of Jacob Leeder.

Jacob Leeder was the son of Sergeant Tim Leeder with the Kootenai County Sheriff’s Office. He died last December after the vehicle he was riding in was struck by a drunk driver.

To honor him, officers from Spirit Lake PD, Coeur d’Alene PD, Post Falls PD, Rathdrum PD, Kootenai County Sheriff’s Office and Idaho State Police will conduct emphasis patrols through the holidays, with the first set for November 21-24.

Other emphasis patrols will take place Dec. 21-22 and Dec. 29-31. Officers on most emphasis patrols will be able to partner with county prosecutors to apply for evidentiary blood draw warrants for impaired drivers who refuse to cooperate with breath tests.

Local law enforcement agencies note that those who refuse to cooperate with breath testing tend to have a significant history of DUIs and a high blood alcohol content when tested.

For each emphasis, members of the public can follow along from home by tuning into the agencies’ social media accounts for a virtual ride along or following #choosewisely.

“Troopers, officers and deputies will be out in force and working across our normal boundaries,” Idaho State Police Captain John Kempf said. “We hope you choose wisely and find a sober driver this holiday season.”

The Idaho Transportation Department invites the public to view and comment on proposed alternatives for the redesign of the Interstate 90 and Idaho Highway 41 interchange at an open house next Thursday, November 8.

Members of the public may arrive at any time between 4 p.m. and 7 p.m. at the Post Falls Police Department.

ITD organized a value planning process to bring together multiple stakeholders—including representatives from the city of Post Falls, Kootenai County and the Federal Highway Administration—to develop and evaluate designs to improve safety and mobility at this intersection. Of the nine alternatives ultimately proposed by the team, two were selected to be presented for public comment at this meeting.

Those unable to attend may visit the project website to learn more and to comment. Comments will be accepted between November 8 and November 27.

Photo of construction in CDA from earlier this year.

It is the question on drivers’ minds as they continue to navigate through orange barrels and divided lanes on I-90 in CDA: when will there be more than two lanes?

The short answer: not in the immediate future, primarily due to a lack of funds.

Currently, work is progressing to reconstruct and lower the interstate through town, with preparations also underway near the Huetter Port of Entry to accommodate traffic flow and bridge maintenance next spring.

Despite appearances, neither of these projects includes the addition of a third lane.

WHY NOT?

The need is there, but the funding is not.

The latest study estimates that the expansion of I-90 to a divided, six-lane roadway from state line to 15^th Street in CDA could require approximately $120 million. That estimate does not include the expansion of bridges—of which there are six—easily elevating the cost another $120 million.

Even though federal funds would spare ITD the majority of bridge replacement costs and all but 7 percent of pavement costs, that is still a significant chunk of the local  ITD district’s budget, which is set at $29 million for next year and designated for pavement work only.

Unfortunately, there is no easy solution: temporary shoulders and crossovers under construction have not been built to withstand prolonged truck traffic, nor have they been approved by the interstate’s owner, the Federal Highway Administration (FHWA), meaning they can’t stay.

OTHER CONSIDERATIONS

To add a third lane to the interstate, an environmental document would have to be prepared by ITD and the public before being approved by FHWA. Environmental documents, because they can serve as the baseline for planning and development in an area for decades, require significant data and outreach to complete. Depending on the impacts, submitting an environmental document to FHWA could take as many as three years.

Ideally expansion would also be coordinated with our neighbors at the Washington State Department of Transportation (WSDOT) to ensure drivers could expect consistent traffic conditions through the larger corridor. At this time, WSDOT officials plan to increase efficiency on the interstate with ramp meters in downtown Spokane, and eventually lane and speed control all the way to the border, since there are not adequate resources or priority within existing funding to expand the route.

As the area grows, traffic demands on the entire state highway system will increase, forcing projects to compete with each other for funding. Projects currently programmed for the next seven years include the expansion of Idaho Highway 41 between Post Falls and Rathdrum, Idaho Highway 53 between state line and Rathdrum and portions of US-95 between CDA and Sandpoint.

THE BOTTOM LINE

That doesn’t mean I-90 will stay the same for the next seven years. The department does have projects in the program to maintain overpasses, to reduce rutting and to preserve existing pavement. Larger projects scheduled include the redesign of the I-90/ID-41 interchange, and depending on the success of a submitted grant application, the relocation of the Huetter Port of Entry to the west.

In the meantime, ITD will make adjustments to the corridor where possible and continue to collect the data necessary for eventual expansion, with the next study anticipated to be completed in the coming year.