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Aero, Dealers, Northgate headline January board meeting

Annual reports from the Division of Aeronautics and Dealer Advisory Board, and a Northgate project update highlighted the January 17 Idaho Transportation Board meeting in Boise.

Aeronautics Annual Report
The Aeronautics Advisory Board and Division of Aeronautics presented their annual reporst to the board at the January 17 meeting at Headquarters in Boise.

The presentation started with an overview on aviation issues at the national and state level. There were no fatalities in worldwide commercial jet traffic in 2017. Unfortunately, there were three general aviation fatalities in Idaho in 2017, the result of 28 crashes. The Division had zero aircraft incidents.

The use of drones is continuing to escalate, with over a million registered in the U.S. Drones are being used as tools for commerce, trade, detection of hazardous situations, disaster recovery, and saving lives. Idaho State Police uses drones to assist investigators with crime and crash scenes. The Meridian Police Department announced a new program utilizing drones to support official law enforcement investigations and public safety missions. Staff is continuing to become more knowledgeable on the use of drones as a resource for other agencies.

Some of the Division’s 2017 highlights included a $1-million airport aid program; improvements to the grant agreements and process; and maintenance of the state’s 31 airstrips. The flight time of the King Air increased from 174.6 hours in FY16 to 205.7 hours in FY17.

Dealer Advisory Board (DAB) Annual Report
The Dealer Advisory Board (DAB) also presented its annual report to the board. It expressed appreciation for the passage of 2017 legislation preventing car dealers convicted of a felony related to the industry from receiving a new license for several years. The legislation should help protect consumers and keep unscrupulous dealers out of the industry.

The DAB has been discussing improvements to ITD’s title process with staff. Although some changes have been made, it asked ITD to explore an electronic title process offered by a vendor. Part of the intent is to implement a better tracking mechanism.

I-15, Northgate Interchange
The board approved exceeding the $1 million consultant services agreement limit for the I-15, Northgate Interchange project north of Pocatello.

A team of consultants was selected to design the project in three stages. Stage 1 is nearing completion. Stage 2 is being negotiated and is expected to bring the total agreement amount to just under $1 million. The total cost, including stage 3, is estimated at $1.5 million, which is about 12% of the anticipated construction cost. The project is in partnership with several local public agencies and developers.