The Idaho Transportation Department will host a meeting Tuesday, June 18, with community officials, federal and state agencies, and technical staff as planned to evaluate alternatives as a part of the ongoing Planning and Environmental Linkages (PEL) study for U.S. Highway 20 between Ashton and the State Highway 87 junction.
ITD initiated a preliminary environmental study and public engagement process in 2021 to examine ways to make US-20 a safer roadway and reliable connection to adjacent communities, Yellowstone National Park, and the region. During development of a PEL study, alternatives undergo three levels of screening based on a range of criteria, including safety, traffic, capacity, and multiple environmental factors. Screening is done in concert with local communities before seeking federal approval to begin an environmental impact study on a smaller number of recommended alternatives. This screening meeting is the third in the three-year process.
An open house will be held this fall to present the findings of the screening and to gather public comments. The Idaho Transportation Board will consider options to move forward to the environmental impacts study phase at a meeting later this year. For more information about the project and the PEL process, please visit the project websites at us20ashtonto87.com and itdprojects.idaho.gov/pages/us-20-ashton-to-sh-87-jct.
Idaho Transportation Department maintenance workers from St. Anthony, Driggs, and Ashton have switched schedules to provide around-the-clock coverage for detours established after the closure of Wyoming State Highway 22 over Teton Pass on June 8.
Drivers are being routed to Idaho State Highway 31 over Pine Creek Pass to Swan Valley, U.S. Highway 26 to Alpine, and US-89 toward Hoback Junction. Crews start the day at 3 a.m. ahead of most commuter traffic. Already these efforts have taken care of roadkill, found and moved an overturned car, and alerted farmers of escaped livestock on the road.
“We’re trying to keep the road and the public safe as best we can with increased traffic,” Operations Foreman Lucas Richins said. “We need people to be on their toes, watching for all the signs, driving patiently and planning extra time to travel due to the congestion.”
Digital message boards are in place at all intersections and areas needed in advance of the detour route. All drivers should be on the lookout for these digital signs that will be updated frequently.
In addition, ITD is staying in coordination with Idaho State Police to help minimize response times to accidents. Drivers should be aware that speed trailers and increased ISP patrols will be in effect.
Guardrail repair and fiber installation efforts along SH-31 have been completed or paused to eliminate any traffic delays.
“We’re doing everything we can to try and make this situation as good as it can be,” said Bryan Young, the acting District Engineer.
Stay up to date on status of the Teton Pass detour routes by visiting 511.idaho.gov, calling 5-1-1 or downloading the app. Travelers can also refer to the Wyoming Department of Transportation Media Kit for daily updates.
With the catastrophic failure of Wyoming State Highway 22 over Teton Pass, the Idaho Transportation Department is cautioning Idaho drivers and tourists they must detour in order to access Jackson Hole, Wyoming. The Teton Pass closure will remain in effect for the foreseeable future. ITD crews and equipment were on scene helping the Wyoming Department of Transportation when the road failed and will continue to assist as needed.
“They called immediately, we started on our side and they started on theirs,” ITD Operations Foreman Lucas Richins said. “It was a good team effort. We’re here to support on our side however we can to make it less strenuous.”
Richins said that seven ITD dump trucks hauled 80-90 loads of material from the massive landslide on Friday and Saturday, June 7 and 8. The loads were taken to a turnout a few miles away until it’s determined what will happen with reconstruction and cleanup efforts.
Travelers should use State Highway 31 to U.S. Highway 26 and then turn left in Alpine onto U.S. Highway 89 toward Hoback Junction. This route means drivers should plan an additional 30-75 minutes of travel time.
ITD has placed and will continually update digital message boards along east Idaho roads warning travelers of this closure well in advance so alternate routes can be taken. SH-31 will also be monitored daily to assess effects and needs with added road usage.
Stay up to date on this closure and other road information by dialing 5-1-1, visiting 511.idaho.gov, or accessing the 511 app.
Two projects are set to begin Monday to create a center mumble strip and add a passing lane on State Highway 33. Motorists will experience lane closures and delays at various times through the summer.
A mumble strip along the center line of SH-33 will be added to increase safety and avoid collisions from the intersection of State Highway 32 to the Wyoming state line. The mumble strip will not be added within the city limits of Tetonia, Driggs and Victor. All striping will also be redone. This project will close one lane in the current work area and be complete within two weeks. Mumble strips are similar to rumble strips but are rounded so noise is heard by the driver and less by surrounding homes and businesses.
Work on the addition of a passing lane, center and right turn lanes and the realignment of Baseline Road along SH-33 between Victor and Teton Pass also begins Monday. Drivers should plan for delays between 15 and 30 minutes as temporary signals will alternate traffic through the work zone from mileposts 151 to 153. Crews will remove outdated concrete cattle underpasses and widen the road to ultimately give motorists a chance to pass slow-moving vehicles before entering Teton Pass. This work will be complete mid to late-September.
Motorists should remember to use caution and be patient through construction zones as the Idaho Transportation Department and contractors work to make the road better for the future. Stay up to date on status of these projects and others by visiting 511.idaho.gov, calling 5-1-1 or downloading the app.
Construction work at the intersection of U.S. Highway 26 (Yellowstone) and Anderson/Lincoln Road in Idaho Falls begins this weekend and will continue June 8-9. Anderson/Lincoln will be closed to through traffic and no left turns will be allowed off Yellowstone. Roads will re-open and traffic resume as normal on Sunday night both weekends. The intersection was also a work zone last year and was unable to be successfully completed with the onset of winter weather.
The City of Idaho Falls requested that the Idaho Transportation Department arrange to have work done over weekend time frames to affect the fewest commuting drivers. ITD is working with the contractor to ensure the most minimal impact while fully completing improvements at the intersection. It is the project goal to complete one half of the work this weekend on June 1-2, and the other half over June 8-9 to ensure the least amount of closure and detours possible. Any changes to that schedule will be communicated if necessary.
Motorists will see the current road surface being milled up and removed to put stronger asphalt in place. Stone matrix asphalt (SMA), a newer construction alternative than the concrete previously used at this intersection, will be laid in solid segments to avoid weak joints and give the new section of road as much as a 20-year life cycle.
Remember to use caution and be patient through construction zones as the Idaho Transportation Department and our contractor partners work to make the road better for the future. Stay up to date on status of this project and others by visiting 511.idaho.gov, calling 5-1-1 or downloading the app.
Exit 332 on U.S. Highway 20 in Rexburg will completely close for one month beginning next Wednesday, May 29 to allow crews to quickly build a new unique diverging diamond interchange (DDI) that will greatly improve the flow of traffic.
All ramps at this exit and University Boulevard between the ramps will be closed to traffic and detoured to nearby interchanges. Through traffic on US-20 will be unaffected during construction.
Detours include Exit 328 at Thorton and Main Street Exit 333 in Rexburg. A temporary signal has been set up at Exit 333 to accommodate additional traffic. Access to businesses near Exit 332 will remain open with signage in place to direct drivers.
“Closing the exit allows crews to work at a significantly faster rate. Our goal is to have this interchange reopened before the Fourth of July,” Resident Engineer and Project Manager Conner Huffaker said.
Motorists should use caution and be aware of congestion. Crews will coordinate with emergency responders to ensure access through the closed construction zone when needed.
Once Exit 332 is reopened, work to construct the same DDI design at Exit 333 will begin. The closure of Exit 333 is expected to begin late July or early August.
More details about these projects can be found at itdprojects.idaho.gov/pages/us20rexburg. Also stay up to date on Idaho road conditions by visiting 511.idaho.gov, calling 5-1-1 or downloading the app.
Starting in late May the Idaho Transportation Department will widen State Highway 33 near Victor to include a passing lane, center turn lane, and right turn lanes. Construction is anticipated to start on May 20.
Motorists can plan on one lane remaining open throughout construction, which is expected to last until early to mid-September. Fifteen-minute wait times between milepost 151 and 153 may occur as flaggers direct traffic. Cones will be moved out of the way of traffic each night, and all lanes will be open.
A new passing lane for eastbound traffic between milepost 151 and 152 will improve the flow of traffic on SH-33 before motorists begin to traverse Teton Pass. A center turn lane will continue after the passing lane to make it easier for drivers to access area subdivisions and Trail Creek Community Pond. Baseline Road will also be realigned to improve visibility at the intersection of SH-33.
Old cattle underpasses that are no longer used exist in three different areas along SH-33 where this work will be done. This means crews need to remove old cement structures, excavate the ground down eight feet and then rebuild one foot at a time to ensure road integrity. Motorists will note additional time spent on those sections of work, with crews present in those areas for longer and flaggers remaining overnight.
This project is made possible through a grant obtained by Teton County of Wyoming in partnership with ITD, Teton County of Idaho, the town of Jackson, the city of Driggs and others. Information about additional planned improvements through the grant can be found at tetonbuildgrant.com.
Stay up to date on the status of this project and others by visiting 511.idaho.gov, calling 5-1-1 or downloading the app.
The Idaho Transportation Department is conducting exploratory drilling on State Highway 33 near the Wyoming state line Tuesday, April 30 and Wednesday, May 1. This section of the road is beginning to slide and the guardrail tip to the side. Geologists and materials crews are taking samples to get information on the cause and to install instrumentation for slide monitoring. No lane closures are in effect as a result of the drilling operation.
The samples collected from drilling will help ITD specialists know what is causing the road to slide, how far down it goes, and how fast it’s occurring. There are natural springs in this vicinity and around SH-33.
Instruments will also be placed in the ground to remain there so ITD can monitor movement. With data collected from drilling, work to ensure the needs of this section of road will be planned and executed in coming months.
Motorists are cautioned to be particularly aware of working crews, slow down, and move over when passing equipment.
Drivers on U.S. Highway 93 north of Salmon should plan for 20-minute delays in April as crews scale rocky slopes above the highway. Professional scalers will clear loose rock to reduce the risk of debris falling to the road during spring freeze-thaw cycles, animal migration and rain events, which can occur year round.
Work will begin Tuesday between Fourth of July Creek and Wagon Hammer Springs. Over the next two weeks crews are expected on site each weekday between 7 a.m. and 5 p.m. They will close the highway for 20 minutes at a time to knock down rocks, pause work and clear the road and then reopen to allow waiting vehicles to pass through.
There will be no delays outside of working hours unless a safety concern is encountered that needs immediate attention.
As part of this project, crews will also repair rock netting already in place and install more of it to cover a greater area. Crews will return in the fall to complete installing new rockfall mesh at this site.
Travelers are reminded to check 511.idaho.gov to be aware of impacts from work zones like this one.
The Idaho Transportation Department is holding an open house on Tuesday, April 2 to share construction plans and closures at two interchanges on US -20 in Rexburg. This summer, the interchanges at University Boulevard (Exit 332) and State Highway 33 (Exit 333) will be rebuilt to be safer and more efficient.
The open house will be held at Madison High School from 4 p.m. to 6 p.m. Information will also be available online from April 2-9 at itdprojects.idaho.gov/pages/us20rexburg.
“Our goal is to complete this project as quickly as possible for the Rexburg community,” Project Manager Conner Huffaker said. “We encourage community members to learn about major tra?c impacts so they can plan ahead for a successful summer.”
Early work on the interchanges began this month. Major impacts will include fully closing each interchange, one at a time, during construction. A full closure of Exit 332 is anticipated for the month of June. A full closure of Exit 333 is anticipated for the month of August. One interchange will remain open as a detour route while the other is closed for construction.
The full closure schedule will allow crews to work faster and complete both interchanges in one construction season. US-20 will remain open to through tra?c during construction. ITD anticipates all work will be complete by late October.
When complete, both interchanges will be diverging diamond interchanges (DDIs). The DDI design was chosen after many years of analyzing technical data and working with the local community. Watch this video to learn how to drive through the new interchanges.
To sign up for email updates, visit itdprojects.idaho.gov/pages/us20rexburg.
