POCATELLO – Multiple fires are burning along I-15 at Pocatello. There is also a fire at Malad Summit on I-15. Fire crews are actively working in the areas, but traffic is delayed or blocked. Motorists are encouraged to slow down, watch for and move over for emergency vehicles and check 511.idaho.gov or the ITD 511 app to receive road status updates. The causes of the fires are not yet known.
Drivers should take extra care while driving through Idaho this weekend with fire danger high amid unseasonably warm temperatures. In particular, motorists should:
Ensure tow chains on trailers are not dragging which can cause sparks.
Tires on vehicles and trailers are in good condition for highway driving. A blown tire can cause the wheel rim to kick sparks into dry grass.
Never throw cigarettes or other combustible materials out of a vehicle.
Never throw glass or other litter out of a vehicle. Glass bottles and other objects can reflect or focus the sun’s rays causing ignition.
Do not park your vehicle over dry grasses when you pull off a road. The exhaust and other hot portions of the undercarriage can ignite a fire.
Fire crews responding to one of the fires along I-15A burned area near the southbound lane of I-15Pocatello Fire Department and other agencies quickly responded to the fires.
POCATELLO – Preliminary work on the Idaho Transportation Department’s project to rebuild the I-86/I-15 System Interchange is beginning this week. Originally built sixty years ago, the design needs to be updated to handle greater traffic volumes and to replace aging bridges that are reaching the end of their life. Joint venture contractors Sundt-Cannon is expected to begin moving equipment into the project area before the end of the week.
The scale of the endeavor is truly historic and took years to bring to fruition. When completed, approximately 900,000 cubic yards of excavation will be completed. In addition, about 225,000 tons of base material will be brought in; 111,000 tons of asphalt will be placed; and over 6,500 cubic yards of concreate will be poured. 70,000 square feet of retaining walls will also be built throughout the project area. Finally, ITD will build eight new bridges. Four of those will use precast concrete girders and four will have steel girders. In all, nearly 5,000,000 pounds of steel will be used in the bridges. Crews will work year-round for approximately three years to complete the project.
The two most significant changes motorists will see during construction are a detour for traffic travelling from I-15 northbound to I-86 westbound and the closure of the Chubbuck Road overpass.
In early August, northbound traffic from I-15 exiting west toward Chubbuck will be detoured through the Northgate Interchange and back onto I-15 South to then proceed to I-86 West. To maintain traffic for the anticipated 2-year construction of the project, the ramp will need to be lowered prior to beginning bridge construction. This necessitates the ramp closure and detour through the Northgate Interchange. This work should be completed by early September.
The Chubbuck Road overpass will be closed around August 1st, prior to the beginning of the school year, and will remain closed during the duration of the project. Construction will remove the existing bridge, excavate new embankments, and create bridges for I-15 to pass over Chubbuck Road. The final Chubbuck Road design will be easier and safer to navigate for motorists, bicyclist, and pedestrians. During construction motorists will be detoured through the Northgate interchange.
During the first phase of construction traffic from northbound I-15 intending to travel west will be detoured through the Northgate interchange.
While demolition of the Chubbuck Road overpass will not begin immediately, an important concern for the school district and other interested parties was altering bus routes and student driving routes after the beginning of the school year. This could cause unnecessary delays and confusion for buses, faculty, parents, and students.
“The school district had some real concerns about making a change during the school year and we are doing what we can to accommodate them for the safety of the students and smooth operation of the schools,” said project co-manager Zak Johnson.
The $112 million project to rebuild the system interchange is a massive undertaking that requires extensive coordination with many different parties. ITD has been in close contact with city leaders, ISP, the Bannock County Sheriff’s office, emergency response, schools, regional transit, and others to ensure the safety of Idaho citizens and motorists passing through Southeast Idaho.
An important question some in the community express is, why now?
“The aging bridges will continue to get closer and closer to the end of their design lifespan,” said project co-manager Greg Roberts, “They would still be functional, but weight limits would start to have to be imposed on truck traffic. That would negatively impact Pocatello’s economic future.”
That is an important concern for Idaho businesses. Large loads, called “mega-loads”, travel through the Gate City to Montana and west to other regions of Southern Idaho. Local manufacturing companies need to be able to move their products to their customers quickly and safely.
However, it is not just the age of the 1960’s bridges that is a concern. When the System Interchange was built there was almost no development on the east side of I-15. Today the Highland area has subdivisions, a high school, the fairgrounds, and the Wellness Complex. In addition, development at Northgate has begun and will result in even more traffic.
“We can only expect traffic volume to increase and with it congestion,” said Roberts. “That will cause the ‘weave’ between the Pocatello Creek onramp and the Chubbuck exit to get worse. Traffic entering, I-15 intending to head toward Chubbuck already has difficulty during peak times crossing all the way to the left to head west on I-86.”
The issue for drivers now is finding a gap to slip into so they can head west toward Chubbuck.
“That will only get worse if we do nothing,” added Johnson, “Gaps between cars will become smaller and smaller making it more difficult to safely merge. Drivers will be forced to make more aggressive lane changes to head to Chubbuck. That kind of situation increases collisions. We don’t want to wait until things become dangerous and people get hurt.”
Safety is a primary concern for project managers and the contractors as motorists prepare to drive through the work site. “These are our neighbors and family working out there,” said Roberts. “We do everything we can to make the worksite safe, but it’s really important that drivers follow posted speed limits, watch for lane changes and signs, and give other motorists space on the road.”
The Chubbuck Road detour will take motorists through the Northgate Interchange.
Both Roberts and Johnson have seen severe worksite accidents caused by inattentive drivers. In one instance a motorist followed a work truck directly into the work site. Unfortunately, deaths do occur and it is often the result of a motorist that do not take care in a work zone.
“It’s something that never leaves you,” said Johnson as he reflected on a fatality on a previous project. “We do everything we can to keep people safe, but when it happens it’s hard not to take it personally. We just ask everyone to please keep themselves, their families, and their neighbors safe while this project is being completed.”
Once completed, the new System Interchange will be safer and ready to carry the increased traffic volumes for the fastest growing state in America.
This project is partially funded with Transportation Expansion and Congestion Mitigation (TECM) funds as part of Governor Little’s Leading Idaho initiative. The program allows ITD to accelerate project timelines to address rapid growth and build critical infrastructure today that would otherwise take many years to fund and build.
This video describes how the new interchange will work and improve mobility and safety for the public – https://youtu.be/KRdVBAyXweA
The new design changes Chubbuck Road into an underpass with additional space for pedestrians and bicycle lanes.Vehicles travelling northbound from Pocatello Creek Road will merge with I-86 traffic on a new ramp. Both lanes will then meet with I-15 northbound traffic near Chubbuck Road.
When completed, westbound traffic from Pocatello Creek Road will pass under I-15 to merge with I-86.
The Idaho Transportation Department will be repairing a signal pole and making traffic signal improvements to the intersections of Alameda and Yellowstone and Cedar and Yellowstone. The work will be performed at night (9 p.m.-5 a.m.) beginning Sunday evening, June 12th and will continue through July 10th. During daylight hours, all businesses will have normal access along Yellowstone, Alameda and Cedar for the duration of the project.
When complete, new sensors will provide better recognition of traffic at the intersection stop bars. Long range radar will provide information on approaching traffic to improve the flow of traffic through these two busy intersections.
ITD will begin work at the northwest corner of Cedar and Yellowstone to pour a new foundation as part of replacing a damaged signal pole.
Work will then move to Alameda and Yellowstone where there will be temporary single lane closures during the nighttime work period (9 p.m. – 5 a.m.). All lanes will be reopened after 5 a.m. and will remain open until 9 p.m.
When Alameda is complete, work will move back to Cedar and will proceed in a similar manner as Alameda.
POCATELLO – The public is invited to submit input via an online comment portal on the proposed Interstate 15/Siphon Road Interchange project. The project is currently being developed, with construction starting as early as 2018.
The interchange will be built approximately three-quarters of a mile north of the Chubbuck Road overpass (milepost 73.5) in Bannock County.
The portal includes a comment form and map featuring the preliminary design of the proposed interchange and its local connector roads. Additionally, it allows users to view a listing of all submitted comments.
The I-15/Siphon Road Interchange project includes the construction of a bridge over I-15 with interstate highway entrance/exit ramps. Any new local roads connecting the existing local-road network to the new interchange will be built by local entities prior to the completion of the new interchange.
The need for the interchange arises from the following issues:
– Limited existing access to I-15 north of the I-15/I-86 junction causes out-of-direction travel that contributes to congestion on U.S. 91 (Yellowstone Avenue)
– Limited existing access to I-15 north of the I-15/I-86 junction is not expected to accommodate the area’s projected future growth northeast of Pocatello and Chubbuck in Bannock County
– Crash rates on U.S. 91 and I-15 in the Pocatello/Chubbuck area exceed statewide averages
Since the previous public outreach for the I-15/Siphon Road Interchange project was concluded more than five years ago, the transportation department will provide an update on the project and invite the public to submit comments on the proposed interchange layout.
Comments are being accepted through July 31. They can be e-mailed to adam.rush@itd.idaho.gov, or to greydon.wright@itd.idaho.gov. Comments also can be mailed to: Idaho Transportation Department, Attn: Adam Rush, 3311 W. State Street, Boise, ID 83703.
Those with questions about the project can contact Adam Rush at (208) 334-8119, or Greydon Wright at (208) 239-3317.
For questions or comments regarding the construction of the new local connector roads outside interstate right-of-way, please contact the city of Chubbuck, city of Pocatello, or Bannock County.
Keeping our roads safe often requires a lot of partnerships – from local governments, to businesses, and even drivers. ITD crews in eastern Idaho are receiving praise for their efforts to repair a heavily damaged traffic signal in Pocatello.
“I cannot recall a project that went as smoothly as this one,” said Mike Neville the Traffic Operations Supervisor for the City of Pocatello.
Crews repair a signal badly damaged in a crash
The signal at the corner of Oak and Yellowstone in Pocatello was heavily damaged earlier this month after it was hit by a truck. Within a week workers from District 5 were ready to make repairs with a brand new signal pole.
“They did a great job of ensuring that the replacement pole was ready, on site, and would fit on the foundation,” Neville said. “It was nice to have such successful cooperation between ITD and the City of Pocatello.”
Replacing the pole took ITD crews away from their families so they could work with while there were fewer cars on the road. Their professionalism, even on their off-day, was noted by those in the area.
“While I do not look forward to additional poles being struck by vehicles, I do look forward to being able to work together again in the near future,” said Neville.
