Overnight detours in Nampa’s Karcher Interchange for sign placement week of Oct. 22

BOISE— Segments of the Interstate 84 Karcher Interchange in Nampa will be closed overnight Oct. 23 and 24 as crews install new overhead signs.

Detours will be in place during construction.

On Tues., Oct. 23, the Midland Blvd. bridge over I-84 will be closed at 8 p.m. and will reopen to traffic Wed., Oct. 24 at 5 a.m. Crews will be installing a new overhead sign structure. Pedestrians will need to use an alternative route while the structure is installed.
On Wed., Oct. 24, the Exit 33 loop ramp and on-ramp to I-84 will be closed at 8 p.m. and will reopen to traffic the next morning at 5 a.m. Crews will be installing a new overhead sign structure.

Reconstruction of the interchange will be complete in early November and is designed to improve traffic flow and safety in this highly traveled area. Project improvements include:

*Adding a second southbound lane to Midland Blvd.
*Adding a second left turn lane from the Karcher Bypass to southbound Midland Blvd.
*Upgrading sidewalks and traffic signals
*Permanently removing the westbound off-ramp (Exit 33B)

The I-84 corridor in Nampa is a very active construction zone with multiple projects occurring in the same vicinity. ITD encourages drivers to slow down, pay attention, and give construction crews space to safely work.

The Exit 33B westbound ramp on the Interstate 84 Karcher Interchange in Nampa will be permanently removed Monday, Oct. 15. Crews will remove the ramp beginning at 8 p.m. Monday and work will be complete by 5 a.m. Tuesday.

Moving forward, all westbound traffic will use the loop ramp, which will be referred to as Exit 33. Signs in the area will reflect the change.

Reconstruction of the interchange is on schedule to be complete by the first week of November. Project improvements include:

*Adding a second southbound lane to Midland Blvd.
*Adding a second left turn lane from the Karcher Bypass to southbound Midland Blvd.
*Upgrading sidewalks and traffic signals.

The project is jointly funded by the city of Nampa and ITD. Central Paving is the contractor.

ITD’s Hinen assists in saving lives in aviation search and rescue

On Aug. 17, the quick thinking and decisive action of Division of Aeronautics Search-and-Rescue Coordinator Jim Hinen resulted in two lives being saved. Hinen was responding to a near-fatal crash near the Middle Fork of the Salmon River.

Bill Sperling and his friend, Tom, crashed around midday in the heavily wooded area northeast of McCall as they flew out after breakfast that morning at the Flying B Ranch. A second plane, flying nearby, said he saw Sperling’s Cessna 182 try to climb out of the canyon, struggle to do so, then crashed as he attempted to turn back.

When the Emergency Locator Transmitter (ELT) was activated by the crash, Hinen was involved as the SAR Coordinator for Aeronautics.

Hinen took the data, contacted air-traffic control and family members to obtain information on the flight path, and arranged for rescue assets to be deployed to the site. During that time, Jim worked with family members to answer questions and provide information.

Hinen’s speculation is that either the aircraft was unable to climb out, and during the turn around, slowed too much and stalled, or had engine/mechanical problems which affected his performance and during the turn around, slowed too much and stalled the aircraft.

“During the summer when the temperature gets hot at high altitudes, aircraft performance is degraded,” Hinen explained. “There is a higher-density altitude.”

“Pilots should be checking aircraft performance charts during preflight to determine if they have enough power available to take off and climb out. ”

They were taken to University of Utah’s burn center in Salt Lake City to recover from second- and third-degree burns sustained in the crash. The response happened within two hours of the crash, likely preventing much different outcome.

“Due to the quick response by Jim, both pilot and passenger are expected to recover,” explained Idaho Aeronautics Administrator Mike Pape.

The Krassel Helitac Crew of McCall performed an emergency short-haul mission to extract one of those involved in the crash who would not otherwise have been able to receive further treatment.

“Short-hauls are when we secure one of our medical providers at the end of a rope who in turn secures the patient,” wrote Anthony Botello, District Ranger with the Krassel Ranger District of the Payette National Forest. “Once secure, both our responder and the patient are hauled under the helicopter at the end of the rope to a place where Life Flight or other responders can take over.”

The Forest Service only has a handful of crews in the nation that are trained and capable of performing short-haul missions.

It is believed to be the first-ever short haul of a member of the public by a Forest Service helicopter and crew.

Hinen maintains he was just one moving part in the rescue. “There were many people involved in the recovery efforts from many agencies and we all assumed a different role in the recovery effort.”

“Fortunately, the people all survived,” said Hinen. “It doesn’t always work out that way.”

Rules of the Road: Temporary Signs

Idaho highways are some of the heaviest-populated areas of the state, making them great places to reach people with messages. But, improper placement of signs or banners can compromise the safety of the road and its users. Here are some things to remember when it comes to placing signs along the highway.

The #1 best practice is to place signs outside the right-of-way (ROW). ITD’s ROW is the land beneath and beside the pavement that is needed for the highway to function well and safely. For most of our roads, the ROW includes shoulders and low drainage areas. Posting signs in this area can negatively impact safety as they can block required sight distances, create distractions and hinder maintenance activities; such as mowing and litter pick-up.

This also applies to posting signs on fences along the highway or bridges over the highway. Generally, those fences mark the edge of ITD’s ROW and posting signs in these places poses similar concerns as stated above.

There are a couple of features you can look for to help guide proper placement of your signs. If there’s a fence running along the highway, you probably shouldn’t place signs anywhere between the fence and highway. If you don’t see a fence, but see power poles along the highway, those are generally placed just inside the ROW. So, you can use power poles as a general marker and not post signs between them and the highway.

Protecting these areas is codified in Idaho law. You can read more in §18-7029 and §40-1910, Idaho Code.

It probably goes without saying, but before placing signs on private property, be sure to ask the property owner if it’s okay.

ITD’s maintenance crews have limited resources to address illegally placed signs or posters. However, when ITD maintenance crews are working in the general area, they will remove signs that pose a visual obstruction, create a safety hazard or generate complaints.

The most popular time for temporary signs is before an election. Besides placing your signs in the proper location, the next best thing you can do is collect your signs after the polls close. We’d prefer not to send out our crews to collect signs, but if they remain posted we will grab them for you. We’ll hold them for 10 days after an election, so you can collect them.

Help us keep our highways safe and follow these simple guidelines when posting temporary signs. Questions? Call ITD at (208) 334-8000 and we can help with any specifics.

ITD wins Environment and Planning honors from nation’s highway organization

BOISE – A bridge-replacement project near Sun Valley and the consolidation of 17 bridge projects in a single contract to reduce time and save millions in taxpayer funds won President’s Transportation Awards from the American Association of State Highway and Transportation Officials (AASHTO) on Sunday, Sept. 23.

The awards, considered the highest honors for state departments of transportation, were handed out to the Idaho Transportation Department (ITD) at AASHTO’s annual conference, held this year in Atlanta, Georgia.

“The key to ITD achieving our vision to become the best transportation department in the country is building strong partnerships within our organization and in the communities across Idaho,” said Idaho Transportation Department Director Brian Ness. “Both of these awards are the result of developing vital collaborations and using innovative ways to better serve our citizens and the traveling public.”

ITD won the Environment award for the Big Wood River Bridge project that replaced the bridge south of Hailey last fall. The design team consulted the Idaho Dept. of Fish & Game regarding wildlife mortality, and added wildlife passage tunnels on both ends of the bridge to reduce vehicle-animal crashes from migrating animals crossing the bridge.

The passageways were designed and built 33-feet wide to maximize the attractiveness of the tunnel to animals — if it was too narrow, it likely would not be used because the animals needed more room for escape in case a predator appeared. It was also built 13-feet tall to accommodate large animals such as elk.

Additional lanes improved traffic flow around slower recreational vehicles that are heading through the resort towns to the mountainous recreation areas, and addressed the regular occurrence of bottlenecking which plagued the former bridge. It also allowed for better traffic flow of large trucks traveling the highway carrying resources, materials, and supplies on a daily basis to support the resort and recreational activities.

ITD also won a President’s Award in the Planning category for replacing 17 bridges under one contract, saving $1.7 million and about 17 years. The single contract enabled the collection of engineering data on all the bridges at once rather than separately. Jointly collecting the data on bridge alignment, subsurface stability, right-of-way footprint, and hydraulic property saved about $100,000 per bridge compared to a bridge-by-bridge method.

The 17 bridges are located in ITD districts 4, 5, and 6 — in eastern, south-central, and southeast Idaho. The three districts worked together to accomplish common objectives.

Even more savings occurred once construction began on these bridges, as the project bid came in about $3 million under estimates.

ITD has won 13 AASHTO President’s Awards in the nine years Ness has been at the helm of the organization.

Interstate 84 expansion project in Nampa begins Sept. 26

The outside shoulders of I-84 will receive temporary widening to accommodate traffic during future construction.

The Idaho Transportation Department will begin reconstructing and widening the shoulders of I-84 between the Karcher and Franklin Boulevard interchanges on Wednesday, Sept. 26. This is the first step of widening I-84 through Nampa.

All traffic lanes will remain open between 5 a.m. and 10 p.m. as crews will work primarily at night. Speeds will be reduced to 55 mph during the day and night. Traffic will be down to one lane in each direction during construction times. The work will continue until mid-November.

The newly reconstructed shoulders will be used to keep two lanes of traffic flowing in each direction when I-84 is widened to three lanes between Karcher Road and Franklin Boulevard starting next spring.

In 2019 and 2020, ITD will replace the Karcher Overpass, redesign and reconstruct the Northside Interchange, and rebuild the bridges over the railroad and Mason Creek. Improvements are expected to improve safety, capacity and traffic flow in Canyon County for many years.

A separate environmental study is underway to identify needed improvements between the city of Caldwell and the Karcher Interchange.

For more information on the I-84 expansion project, please visit itdprojects.org/i-84-karcher-to-franklin or text 84CORRIDOR to 22828.

Child Passenger Safety Week reminds us to keep young ones safe

Keeping children safe on the road means making sure they are buckled up in the right seat at the right age. That’s the message for next week’s National Child Passenger Safety Week (Sept. 23-29).

The Idaho Transportation Department (ITD) is partnering with National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) to remind parents to properly secure their children in the right proper restraint any time they get in a car.

“Car seats, booster seats, and seat belts are often used incorrectly,” said Sherry Jenkins, with ITD’s Office of Highway Safety. “No parent ever wants to get it wrong when it comes to his or her child’s safety. “

Motor vehicle crashes are a leading killer of children ages 1 to 13. She added that using age- and size-appropriate child restraints are the best way to reduce these deaths.

“In 2016, 3 of 4 child passengers under 7 years old killed in Idaho car crashes weren’t in car seats, booster seats, or wearing seat belts,” she said. “Those kids would have had a better chance of surviving had they been buckled up.”

“When children under 7 years old grow out of car seats, their greatest risk is not being placed in booster seats,” Jenkins added. “Booster seats can save lives and are as important as any of the other restraints.”

From 2012 to 2016, 22 children under age 7 were killed in Idaho passenger vehicle crashes. Of those, 13 were unrestrained.

Child Passenger Safety Week is dedicated to teaching parents and caregivers about the importance of correctly installing and using car seats, booster seats, and seat belts. Parents also will be reminded of the importance of registering car seats with the manufacturer so they can be notified in the event of a recall.

NHTSA recommends keeping children rear-facing as long as possible up to the top height or weight allowed by their particular seats. Once a child outgrows the rear-facing car seat, he or she is ready to travel in a forward-facing car seat with a harness. After outgrowing the car seats, children should be placed in booster seats until they are big enough to fit seat belts properly without help from a booster seat.

NHTSA and ITD recommend keeping children in the back seat until at least age 13. It’s the safest place for kids to ride.

To help parents and caregivers in Idaho select the right car seats for their children, certified Child Passenger Safety Technicians will hold free car seat-check events around the state.

“These are events where parents can come out and know for sure that their kids are as safe as possible when riding in a car,” Jenkins said. “If you have questions at all about your car seats please attend one of these events.”

National Child Passenger Safety Week Events:
Friday, Sept. 28, 10 a.m. – 2 p.m., at Nell J Redfield Memorial Hospital, Malad, (208) 766-5368
Saturday, Sept. 29, 10 a.m. – 2 p.m., at St. Luke’s Children, Nampa, (208) 381-3033
Saturday, Sept. 29, 1 p.m. – 3 p.m., at Meridian Fire Dept, Station One, Meridian,
(208) 888-1234
Saturday, Sept. 29, 10 a.m. – 2 p.m., at Walmart Supercenter, 2470 Pullman Road, Moscow,
(503) 523-6902

That’s why the car seat-check events are scheduled during National Child Passenger Safety Week and the month of September. Parents can come out and know for sure that their kids are as safe as possible when riding in a car.”

The Crowded Commute: when will drivers get an extra lane on Interstate 90?

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.

Cycling group expresses gratitude for ITD efforts during US-12 construction

We know this summer’s construction has been less-than-convenient for many drivers, and knowing that there’s still several weeks of construction ahead, we would like to take the time to say thank you for your patience and cooperation.

Recently, the department received thanks about its efforts to support all users during construction from a local bicycling association. To read that letter, click here.

These words of gratitude mean a great deal to ITD as our project managers have worked hard to oversee these projects that will improve your safety and mobility along this corridor.

Any time we receive feedback, we try to respond or adjust our practices when possible. While planning construction this summer, we heard that this corridor was a popular bicycling destination and worked to reduce our impact. The result was a partnership with Three Rivers Rafting to offer a shuttle, which is noted in the above letter from the Adventure Cycling Association.

Once again, thank you for your patience, and please continue to reach out with any comments or concerns.

Construction on State Highway 44 Canal Crossing in Middleton Begins in Late September

BOISE – The Idaho Transportation Department will begin construction of a new canal crossing in Middleton on Idaho Highway 44 between 1st Avenue and Dewey Avenue in late September.

The existing canal crossing is deteriorated and needs to be replaced to maintain safety and mobility for commuters.

ITD will build the project in phases to reduce impacts to motorists. One lane of traffic in each direction will be maintained during construction and access to local businesses will remain open.

The project is scheduled to be complete in mid-spring 2019.

The contractor for the $840,000 project is Sunroc Corporation.

ITD will continue to update the public about the project. If you have questions, please email Jennifer.gonzalez@itd.idaho.gov or call 208.334.8938.