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Review of project and plans, celebration of mobility highlight June meeting

After touring the Magic Valley June 15 during the monthly Idaho Transportation Board meeting, the board conducted its business meeting in Shoshone the following day, approving the draft ITIP and the public-involvement plan for the program, as well as the Highway Safety Performance Plan.

Draft ITIP
The draft FY 16-20 Idaho Transportation Investment Program (ITIP) was presented to the board. The five-year plan includes 783 projects, most of which address pavement and bridge needs, including seal coating 3,512 lane miles and replacing 66 bridges. Other projects include improving 19 railroad crossings, constructing 266 ramps to Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) standards, and building or improving 34 bicycle/pedestrian projects.

Federal Transit Administration funds will fund intercity corridors, purchase vehicles, and rehabilitate existing transit vehicles.

The ITIP also includes 328 aviation projects, such as new facility development, facility maintenance and rehabilitation, and facility and statewide planning. Funding is also available for emergency supplies and small projects. The highest priority is given to projects that protect the current facility or public investment — 57 percent of projects are maintenance related.

Public Involvement for Draft ITIP
The board approved proceeding with the public-involvement process for the draft FY16-20 ITIP.

Staff will conduct extensive outreach efforts to notify the public of the opportunity to review the draft program and submit comments. A new, interactive tool was added to the department’s webpage to encourage public involvement. The ITIP can be sorted by district, county/city, route, or program (i.e. aeronautics or transit). The website also enables citizens to submit comments.

The public review and comment period will extend from July 1 through July 31. The comments will be reviewed and considered. If appropriate, revisions will be made to the ITIP before the final document is submitted to the board for approval in September.

Highway Safety Performance Plan
The board approved the FY16 Highway Safety Performance Plan, which annually addresses Idaho’s most critical behavior-related, highway-safety problems. The plan will be submitted to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration.

The document includes a number of goals, such as reducing the five-year average number of fatalities, reducing the five-year average number of motorcyclists killed not wearing helmets, increasing the yearly observed rate for seat-belt use, and keeping the five-year average number of bicyclists killed by motor vehicles from increasing.

The plan also identifies strategies and projects to meet those goals. ITD relies heavily on its partners to reduce traffic fatalities and serious injuries.

District 4 Annual Report
District 4 reported on some of its performance metrics and activities. For instance:

- D4 roads were free of significant impediment 73 percent of the time this past winter, which exceeded the mobility goal of 55 percent.

- D4 delivered 100 percent of its FY16 projects on time.

- The Cotterell Rest Area received the first-place award for a special project from the ACEC.

- The district has completed its review to determine what positions and job skills will be required in 2020.

- D4’s design and construction groups have been combined to improve consistency throughout the life of a project.

-The district will be receiving a new fleet of trucks this fall or next spring. The shop employees have been proactive in the specifications and actual construction of the snowplow fleet. The intent is to not only have the best fleet, but also implement performance measures to keep the fleet operating at the highest level possible for the life of the fleet.