Veteran and ITD employee continues to help those in need

Navy Veteran and Idaho Transportation Department (ITD) worker Shawn Denham continues to answer the call of duty; it just looks different these days. Denham is part of ITD’s Incident Response team, a two-person team that aids motorists broken down on Interstate 84 in the Treasure Valley.

The day-to-day mission has no doubt changed since Denham’s five years with the Navy. Denham can now be found jump-starting vehicles, refilling a radiator, changing tires, and providing gas to those stranded along I-84. On average he drives 150 to 200 miles each day looking for motorists in need of help.

ITD’s Incident Response team began in 1997. Since that time crews have responded to well over 100,000 traffic incidents and are often the first on the scene at collisions.

Any incident that clogs the roadway has potential to create secondary crashes, which is why ITD’s Incident Response team is cruising the interstate Monday through Friday. For each minute a crash is not cleared, the chances of a secondary crash increase about three percent.

There is also significant economic benefit to the team. It’s been estimated that in Southwest Idaho, a half-hour delay in an urban setting can equate to $30,000 in lost work productivity.

Eleven percent of ITD’s workforce is made up of veterans. In total, there are 164 veterans at ITD including 12 women and 152 men. The Idaho Transportation Department wants to thank all veterans of the United States Armed Forces for their service.

ITD avalanche team back in Lowman as they prepare for El Niño season and new challenges

The Idaho Transportation Department’s (ITD) avalanche team is back in Lowman as they prepare for another season and new challenges. Every winter the team monitors conditions to close roads when necessary for the safety of travelers and maintenance crews.

The four-person team has more than 70 years of combined experience. The team is stationed in Lowman, 20 miles from an avalanche-prone section of State Highway 21 that spans eleven miles from Grandjean to Banner Summit. The team also closely monitors U.S. Highway 12 near the Montana border.

According to avalanche team leader, Bill Nicholson, there are more avalanche paths now than when he started over a decade ago. A wildfire burn scar has changed the landscape.

“When I first got here there were 62 avalanche paths, but on one side of the canyon there was a forest fire. All the trees are now gone. There are not any anchors in there anymore. This area that was not even considered a problem has now become one of our biggest problems. We have around 70 avalanche paths now,” Nicholson said.

Another difference this winter brings is El Niño. The National Weather Service predicts a milder winter, but Nicholson says less snowpack can sometimes make it even more difficult. He says nothing is the same year to year, so they will use their experience and tools to examine the snowpack like they would any other year. The team relies on specialized weather reports from the National Weather Service, as well as mini weather stations that have been placed in risky areas.

There are only three highways in the United States that fall under the ‘High’ category in the Avalanche Hazard Index: SH-21 in Lowman, State Highway 210 in Utah, and U.S. Highway 550 in Colorado.

ITD’s snow & ice team again best in nation!

Despite more competitors than ever before, the ITD maintenance team took home first-place honors at the Snow & Ice Conference and National Snow Roadeo for the second time in three years. They won it in 2021 and placed second nationally last year.

Winning the overall team award again in Colorado September 29 against 300 competitors from all across the country is impressive,” said ITD Chief Deputy and COO Dan McElhinney. “We are proud of our ITD maintenance roadeo team members for their commitment to skill excellence, work zone safety and representing Idaho as the best in the nation!”

The ITD team (pictured at right) featured Kyler Fullmer and Stacey McCurdy of District 6 (East Idaho), Jed Henderson of District 1 (North Idaho), and Brandon Steffens of District 5 (Southeast Idaho). These were also the top four finishers in the state roadeo competition held in July in Salmon, Idaho.

McCurdy, Henderson and Steffens were also on the team that won the national title in 2021.

“I would like to thank the participants,” said first-year roadeo coordinator Alan Huey. “They were proud to represent ITD and showcase the department’s commitment to safety and the skills that translate into service for Idaho’s drivers each winter.”

“The competition was tough, but the team delivered a top-notch performance.”

Each event featured loads of competitors — Single Axle had 53 participants, Grader had 58, Tandem Axle had 59, and Skid Steer had 69. The Loader event featured 100 participants!

“It’s great that we can come together as a team from all different districts to take first place again this year as an agency,” said D1’s Henderson, who made his third straight trip to nationals this year, and was also a part of ITD’s first title team in 2021. “Everyone performed so well, and I look forward to competing again next year.”

Henderson also expressed his appreciation to Kelley Dick, who is moving on from the roadeos next year after promoting to ITD Fleet Manager.

ITD seeks Public Information Officer to serve SW Idaho region

The Idaho Transportation Department (ITD) is looking for a full-time Public Information Officer to serve the Southwest Idaho regional office located in Boise, Idaho. The ideal candidate will have experience in the transportation field or familiarity with transportation issues, and will also be media savvy.

This individual will make a difference daily, and will be part of an award-winning agency, dedicated to enhancing the quality of life in Idaho through transportation. At ITD, every employee is critical to the mission as we strive to foster an innovative, collaborative workplace where employees can grow and do their best work. This opening is an opportunity to use your media relations, writing, and collaboration skills to promote the department’s mission.

The PIO will join the department’s Office of Communication professionals statewide in telling the story of one of the best transportation departments in the country. Candidates must have strong writing skills, experience interacting with news media, an understanding of how to use social media effectively, and the ability to develop successful outreach campaigns, facilitate public meetings and assist with internal communication.

The position closes Aug. 12.

Prepare for takeoff! Hoodoo Meadows to become next backcountry airport

Hoodoo Meadows Airstrip, located in Lemhi County in the Salmon-Challis National Forest, will become part of the Idaho Transportation Department’s Division of Aeronautics (Aero) stable of backcountry airstrips this summer, bringing the number of remote airstrips throughout the state to 32. (See chart, right).

Idaho’s main aviation user groups — Idaho Aviation Association (IAA) & Recreational Aviation Foundation (RAF) — will fund and hire a contractor to clear the existing runway area of vegetation and tree in-growth in preparation for use by pilots and recreational user groups. The runway has become overgrown with vegetation during the last four decades due to the lack of a formal maintenance program.

There are some significant benefits to maintaining Hoodoo and designating it as a backcountry airstrip available to the public:

It allows the public to access public lands.
It serves as an entry point into the backcountry for sportsmen and hikers to streams, lakes and trails, taking pressure off other areas.
It is a safety benefit, allowing access in an emergency landing/forced weather landing situation, and allowing for better response to emergency rescue or recovery situations.
It increases accessibility to all including the disabled, medically limited population.

Hoodoo Meadows Airstrip was originally built in 1936 and abandoned in 1985 due to lack of maintenance and unpredictable afternoon winds at a high elevation (8,200 feet). Despite this, there were no accidents recorded during the nearly 50 years it was in service and open to the public. The runway is 2,200 feet long and about 150 feet wide – more than sufficient to accommodate takeoffs and landings.

Idaho Department of Fish & Game, Idaho Division of Aeronautics, and the United States Forest Service started the process of re-establishing maintenance at the airstrip in 2016. Efforts to maintain Hoodoo were shelved as the project was embroiled in budgetary discussions and scope-of-work questions. In early 2020, Aero renewed efforts to address Hoodoo and maintain it as an Idaho backcountry airstrip. The Division of Aeronautics will provide continuing maintenance to the Hoodoo airstrip.

Approval to move forward with adding Hoodoo to Aero’s backcountry stable of airports was granted by the Idaho Transportation Board in April 2021 following recommendation by the Aeronautics Advisory Board. A Special Use Permit granting the go-ahead on the project was signed by the Forest Service on March 3 of this year. A follow-up request to Dept. of Environmental Quality to determine if a Stormwater Pollution Prevention Permit was required was answered on May 11, stating that it was not needed to re-establish maintenance.

See the Hoodoo Meadows webpage for details, FAQs and a list of project supporters.

US-95 Granite North project wins National Recognition Award

The US-95 Granite North project recently won a National Recognition Award from the American Council of Engineering Companies (ACEC) in their 2023 Engineering Excellence Awards. The award recognized both design and construction achievements.

The award was announced March 23 and was presented to ITD project manager Steven Bakker (pictured below) in Washington, DC on June 13. It had been named the ACEC Project of the Year for Idaho on April 10, making it eligible for the national award.

The National Recognition Award is a prestigious distinction honoring projects demonstrating exceptional engineering excellence at the national level. HDR Inc. was the project consultant.

The $21.1 million Granite North expanded the route to accommodate rapid growth in the area. The project began in fall 2020 and finished in November 2022, allowing traffic to use the new road a full year ahead of schedule. The project featured 1.2 million cubic yards of earthwork, funded through ITD’s award-winning GARVEE (Grant Anticipation Revenue Vehicle) program.

The expansion also included 170,000 cubic yards of closely supervised blasting of tough, rocky soils in the area, allowing crews to expand the route to four lanes over Granite Hill. Additional lanes over Granite Hill provide better mobility, and frontage roads improve safety by routing drivers to improved intersections to enter US-95.

Safety First
The project was a top priority, being home to a High-Accident Location in the region. Although the project involved more than 60,000 hours of work time, there were zero OSHA incidents or infractions due to a highly collaborative and proactive “see something, say something” safety mentality. The work improved safety by reducing direct access to the highway and guiding drivers via frontage roads to the best spot for traffic to turn onto the highway. Crews also installed new signage, completed landscaping, and added rumble strips to help in the safety of drowsy or wayward drivers.

“We first won the statewide Engineering Excellence award from ACEC of Idaho in April 2023. Just prior to that we learned that this project would also get the national recognition award in Washington, D.C. It’s very cool to have a relatively small job in rural Idaho be recognized on the national stage,” said Bakker.

No Boundaries

Winter storms across the country have delayed travel, shuttered schools and overwhelmed crews trying to dig out of the snow.

Just because the snow falls, it doesn’t mean that people are going to stop driving. Idaho is a beautiful place to travel. There are so many roads and so many wonderful places to visit. From Coeur d’Alene in northern Idaho to Island Park in the eastern art of the Gem State, people come from all around to relish in the unmatched beauty.

On average, there are approximately 7,000 winter-related crashes each year in Idaho. ITD responds to winter storms as they occur and attempts to clear the roads as the snow begins to fall. Crews are successful in keeping winter roads clear and passable even during the storm a whopping 75% of the time! However, in situations where a storm covers a large area, resources can be stretched beyond available limits.

It’s been a tough winter. We have felt that particularly in East Idaho. With little to no breaks between storms, it has put a strain on our crews.

In the region, winter maintenance has stretched resources far beyond what crews could handle on their own. When the word went out asking for assistance in order to keep the roads clear and safe for the traveling public, the response was tremendous.

Several other ITD districts sprang into action, with each sending people to help during the storm. District 3 (SW Idaho) sent four crew members to pitch in and lend a much-needed helping hand. District 2 (North-Central Idaho) sent a couple crew members to lend a hand with the storm. Four other employees from District 2 came down after the storm to assist with the clean-up process. They came ready for action, with a rotary plow in tow! Pictured above are D2’s Jasun Walker and Jon Rice with their rotary plow.

While ITD crews function primarily within their designated district or boundaries, it is safe to say that when one district needs help, we don’t see boundaries, just possibilities.

ITD work zone, road clearing efforts win community service awards

ITD’s work zone safety and winter road maintenance efforts recently won in the Leadership in Community Service categories of the Communitas Awards, which recognizes excellence in Community Service and Social Responsibility.

“Making Work Zones Safer” won on March 23 in the Leadership in Community Service category, and “Winter Road Maintenance Customer Service to Idaho Road Users” won in a category called Leadership in Community Service and Corporate Social Responsibility. This is an international competition, and ITD won in categories that also featured such massive companies as Toyota, MasterCard, Dow Chemical, and Honeywell.

“We started this program to highlight the community involvement of great companies and individuals who were sharing their skills and resources with their communities,” explained Mardelle Riley of the Association of Marketing & Communications Professionals (the umbrella group guiding the Communitas Awards).

“Our judges found that your nominee clearly exhibits the spirit of communitas, a Latin word that means people coming together for the good of a community. Communitas winners are recognized for specific programs involving volunteerism, philanthropy and ethical, sustainable business practices.”

The Winter Road Maintenance entry focused on the above-and-beyond efforts of hundreds of workers across the state dedicated to keeping the state’s roads and bridges clear and open. The department’s Work Zone efforts positively impact Gem State drivers and the many ITD employees working on roadsides statewide.

“We are proud of ITD employees for winning this international recognition in the middle of our busiest winter storms season in years,” said ITD Chief Deputy and Chief Operations Officer Dan McElhinney. “Their outstanding customer-focused efforts keep our highways and work zones safe for drivers, project contractors and our own dedicated highway workers. This is truly a confirmation of the incredible services they provide daily for Idaho communities statewide.”

ITD tracked 4,572 storm events last year, but have already seen 6,773 storms this year, and this number will continue to climb over the next month or so. The numbers demonstrate that this winter has been more intense than recent years. However, the Mobility Score, which indicates the percentage of time during winter storms that the state’s roads are clear and passable, remains steady at 75% despite the more challenging winter.

ITD Highlights the Trailblazing Women in Construction

This week is Women in Construction Week, which celebrates the vital role women play in the construction industry.

Throughout the week, ITD will highlight several employees who strengthen and amplify the success of women in the construction industry on our social media pages.

We asked several employees to answer questions and give advice to young women entering the field.

Carrie Ann: Technical Engineer Services Leader

How did you get started in the construction/transportation industry?
I grew up just outside of Milwaukee. There was ALWAYS new construction going on and it was a thing between me and my dad as we’d be driving, “Whoa, check that out on your right! Look at the size of that crane!” There was always something new to gawk at. “What do you think they’re doing there with that “tic-tac-toe” looking thing?”, which ended up being geogrid. When we’d travel, we’d notice different things like the wildlife overpass crossings in Canada or the overpass restaurants over the interstate in Illinois. We even traveled down to Chicago once to watch a building implosion on a Saturday morning.

What do you like most about being in the construction/transportation industry?
I like the transformation of things. You can literally move mountains. It’s so amazing seeing some of these projects once they’re complete and it’s amazing to be a part of that.

What advice do you have for young women entering the industry?
Have confidence in yourself. Unfortunately, you may have to prove yourself at times more than a man would, but accept the challenge, show that you know your stuff, and don’t give up. I think things are getting better, but unfortunately some prejudice still does exist.

Jessika: Workforce Development Manager

How did you get started in the construction/transportation industry?
I started on a highway construction crew as an Engineer Technician I with Nevada Department of Transportation

What do you like most about being in the construction/transportation industry?
I love that I am a part of improving people’s lives every day.

What advice do you have for young women entering the industry?
No job is a ‘man’s job’.

Megan: Design Construct Residency A

How did you get started in the construction/transportation industry?
It was a bit of an accident – I have a degree in mechanical engineering, but jobs in mechanical engineering are few and far between unless you want to live in a big city, which I didn’t. While looking for local jobs I came across one at ITD and decided to see what it was like. I decided I liked the people and environment, ITD decided to take a chance on me, and the rest is history.

What do you like most about being in the construction/transportation industry?
Being able to have a positive impact on the community. I’m still blown away by the fact that the projects I work on will have impacts that last for decades.

What advice do you have for young women entering the industry?
There is so much information to learn and so many things to keep track of when working in transportation. It’s easy to get overwhelmed, but just remember to take a deep breath and to ask for help when you need it.

Taylor: Grants & Contracts Officer

How did you get started in the construction/transportation industry?
I first started in the transportation industry as a temporary employee in the Division of Motor Vehicles at the Idaho Transportation Department. I sought out this opportunity after meeting previous ITD employees through a 1 credit weekend workshop class at Boise State University. After graduating and working as a temp for 2 months, I received a full-time position and have worked my way up in the department since.

What do you like most about being in the construction/transportation industry?
I really enjoy working in the transportation industry because every day is different. The logistics of moving people, products, etc. is never boring or underwhelming and no two days are the same. New challenges present themselves regularly and individuals in the transportation/ construction industry work together to collaborate and innovate on solutions.

What advice do you have for young women entering the industry?
Lean into learning as much as you can and try to look at every new challenge as an opportunity for growth and development. Come in confident, with a positive attitude and be willing to learn. Everything else will fall into place as it is meant to.

*Photo of the first female foreman at ITD, Shannon Thornton.*

We also want to highlight Shannon Thornton (above) who will retire on March 15 after about 28 years on the job in North Idaho. She is the only female maintenance foreman currently at ITD, and is believed to be the only one in agency history.

Thank you to all ITD employees who strengthen and amplify the success of women in the construction industry!

Follow this campaign on our Instagram and Facebook throughout the week.

First female maintenance foreman in the state set to retire

Shannon Thornton will retire March 15 after about 28 years on the job in North Idaho. She is the only female maintenance foreman currently at ITD, and after HR reviewed records, she’s believed to be the only one in agency history.

She started as an hourly in the Sandpoint residency in 1994 and transitioned to maintenance in the Coeur d’Alene area within a few years. For nearly the last two decades, she has served as foreman in the Sandpoint area and then the Athol area.

“She always found a way to say ‘yes’ to anything that was asked of her,” said Dave Freeman, who works for her at the Athol shed. “And when she commits, she leads like nobody else does, but at the same time with a lot of heart and kindness.”

Freeman shared several stories and remarked on her ability to network and obtain resources for her crews. Through her leadership and relationships across the state she has initiated and overseen the construction of maintenance facilities all over the district.

D6 District Engineer Jason Minzghor served as the operations engineer while Thornton was in Sandpoint.

“She took on every challenge I gave her,” Minzghor said. “State Highway 200 was cleared of trees and brush through most of the corridor because she was so motivated. She did more in one summer clearing trees than prior foremen had in the past 20 years. I counted on Shannon to get things done.”

Her crew members and the larger emergency response community have relied on her expertise and leadership over the years. In an emergency, Thornton was the first to offer assistance wherever it was needed.

“She believed it was the right thing to do because it’s where we all live, and it’s our community too,” Freeman said.

When Thornton looks back on her career, her favorite memories are of projects that her crew was able to take on and accomplish, from ditching to restoring gabion baskets to replacing culverts.

“I have had the opportunity to work with people that are truly dedicated and are truly here to serve our customers,” Thornton said. “I have appreciated my time in maintenance and those people who have always been helpful.”

Last month she spoke to the Women in Transportation group at ITD and shared insights about serving as a woman in operations, as well as advice on servant leadership.

“Never forget as foreman you are there to get what the crew needs to accomplish their job as safely and efficiently as possible. The crew comes first,” Thornton said.