8/2/2011
Reed Hollinshead
ITD Communication
208-334-8881
reed.hollinshead@itd.idaho.gov
Westbound fourth lane to open on I-84 tomorrow morning (Wednesday, Aug. 3) between Meridian and Garrity interchanges
MERIDIAN – A new 65-mph travel lane will open on westbound Interstate 84 tomorrow morning (Wednesday, Aug. 3) by 5 a.m., the Idaho Transportation Department announced. The new lane will begin at the Meridian westbound on-ramp and continue for six miles to the Garrity westbound off-ramp.
The opening is a long-awaited milestone for a series of interstate improvements in the Treasure Valley. Since 2007, ITD has constructed 13 projects on I-84. There are now four lanes in each direction open from Garrity to Meridian, and from Meridian to Broadway. The pavement in that stretch is all new for the first time since 1968.
“Three years ago this stretch of I-84 was one of the most congested areas in the valley,” said GARVEE Program Manager Amy Schroeder. “Now we have an eight-lane interstate that will accommodate growth in commerce and population.”
ITD received environmental clearance from the Federal Highway Administration this summer to open the fourth lane. The interstate widening project in 2010 included the pavement for the additional lane.
The eastbound fourth lane opened two weeks ago in the same area. West of the Garrity Interchange, the Franklin-to-11th Avenue construction project will continue until early 2012, bringing a third lane in each direction to that stretch of highway.
Improvements were funded through the GARVEE Transportation Program, which uses Grant Anticipation Revenue Vehicle (GARVEE) bonds to expedite improvements.
"Before this effort, we had two lanes in each direction since the late '60s," said Idaho Senator John McGee, a GARVEE proponent from his time as Senate Transportation Committee Chairman. "Doubling that capacity will serve valley commuters and travelers well as Idaho forges ahead."
"This project has not only drastically improved the transportation system in our valley, it has created thousands of jobs at a time when they've been needed the most," he added.