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Transportation board, guests to celebrate
an end and a beginning on U.S. 30

The Idaho Transportation Board will join elected officials and southeast Idaho residents in celebrating completion of the U.S. 30 Topaz to Lava Hot Springs widening project next week.

A ceremony is planned at 11:30 a.m. Thursday (Sept. 18) about one-half mile west of Lava Hot Springs. It will serve two purposes -- formally concluding the first phase of the U.S. 30 project and initiating a new project in the corridor that will widen the highway and construct two bridges over the Portneuf River.

ITD invites the public to help close one chapter and open another along the heavily traveled corridor. From McCammon, drive east on U.S. 30 about 10 miles, to milepost 369. The ceremony will take place on the eastbound side of the highway.

Idaho Transportation Board Member Neil Miller of Pocatello will give a formal address. Dignitaries then will install the last piece of safety guardrail to mark completion of the project that widened three miles of U.S. 30 west of Lava Hot Springs to four lanes.

It was the first project in Idaho to be funded with Grant Anticipation Revenue Vehicle (GARVEE) bonds, which allow the transportation department to accelerate highway improvements.

The U.S. 30 Portneuf River Bridges Project will expand 1.9 miles of the highway to four lanes and replace existing culverts with two new bridges over the Portneuf River. Construction will begin this fall.

For more information about U.S. 30 projects, visit itd.idaho.gov and select "Projects" and "Southeast Idaho."