Idaho Transportation Department approves Highway 16 extension

The Idaho Transportation Board approved dozens of new road projects across every corner of the state on May 19, when it held its regular monthly meeting. At the top of the list for projects in District 3 was the extension of Idaho State Highway 16, better known to locals as the Emmett Highway, from Chinden Blvd. to Interstate 84.

The complete list of projects encompasses $350 million for “shovel-ready” construction work, all of which can begin sometime next year. Many of the projects are part of Idaho Gov. Brad Little’s “Building Idaho’s Future” transportation funding solution.

“Idaho is the fastest-growing state in the nation. To keep up with the demands of a fast-growing state, our historic transportation funding solution helps save Idahoans’ time, keeps us safe on our roads and makes our state’s economy even stronger,” Little said in a statement. “I appreciate the Idaho Transportation Board for acting quickly to put these new funds to work.”

The extension of Hwy 16 was one of the shovel-ready projects approved. The ITD board allocated $170 million from the state’s Transportation Expansion and Congestion Mitigation (TECM) funds for Phase 2 of the Emmett Highway project. Phase 2 involves extending Hwy 16 from where it currently ends at US 20/26 (Chinden Blvd.) south to Interstate 84. “Hwy 16 will have signals at Ustick and Franklin, and it will go over Cherry Lane and McMillan Road,” explained ITD spokesperson Jake Melder. When Phase  2 is complete, Hwy 16 will have two lanes in each direction from Hwy 44 (State Street)  to the interstate.

Phase 3 of the Emmett Highway project received $15 million. “In this phase, we will upgrade the intersections into interchanges,” Melder said. This final stage of the project will remove the traffic signals at the four intersections with State St., Chinden, Ustick and Franklin, and replace them with on-ramps and off-ramps, converting the road into a full-featured limited access highway.

The first phase of the Emmett Highway project is already complete. “Phase 1 was the extension of Hwy 16 from Hwy 44 to US 20/26,” Melder explained. “It had a budget of $104 million.”

A link (from the Hwy-16 project website) to a virtual public meeting on the next phase of Hwy 16 construction went live at 9 a.m., May 21, and will be open for public comments until June 4, Melder added.

The board also dedicated $37 million of TECM funds to expand US 20/26 to six lanes from Middleton Road to I-84. Both projects should be bonded and under construction next year.

The TECM fund was increased to $80 million through House Bill 362 signed by Little at the beginning of May. ITD will leverage those ongoing funds into a Building Idaho’s Future bonding program that could ultimately yield be as much as $1.6 billion for infrastructure projects. The goal for the bonds is to finance the construction and improvement of major transportation corridors over the next six to eight years.

The TECM fund is authorized by Idaho Code 40-720. The fund finances projects that expand Idaho’s transportation system to address and mitigate traffic congestion. TECM projects are proposed by ITD to the transportation board. The board evaluates and chooses which project will receive funding based on how well each project will improve travel time, facilitate traffic flow and alleviate traffic congestion.

This article was updated on May 20 with details on the Hwy 16 construction phases and their funding allocations.