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.