Highway 20 corridor plan takes shape

Wednesday, July 17, 2013

A long-range plan aimed at improving the flow of traffic on the northeast side of Mountain Home is taking shape as city officials prepare for future commercial and industrial growth in that part of town.

The study focuses specifically on the U.S. Highway 20 corridor north and south of Exit 95 and stretches from South 18th East Street to East 15th North Street just past the Industrial Park area.

Unveiled recently to business owners, stake holders and residents along this traffic corridor, the study represents a significant change in how cities develop roadways for future growth, according to city planner Bonnie Harper.

Traditional traffic plans focused solely on moving as much traffic as quickly as possible, Harper said. In comparison, today's standards look at getting everyone safely from one place to another, regardless if they're in a vehicle, on foot or riding a bicycle.

"It's not going to be the perfect solution for everybody," she added. "What we're looking at is what's best for the community as a whole."

According to Harper, efforts like that will help the city keep pace with future growth and development versus having to play catch up. It'll help the city avoid problems that communities like Eagle faced in recent years after rapid growth in a short amount of time overwhelmed the city's ability to deal with increased traffic along Eagle Road.

Mountain Home hopes its long-range plan will help the city avoid similar issues regarding changes in traffic patterns and access points along the corridor as the city continues to grow in coming years. While it's a 30-year plan, it's necessary to start thinking about these issues now, Harper said.

"We want to identify current issues and potential, future conflicts," she added.

Several factors prompted the study. In addition to planning for expected growth on the city's north side, this traffic corridor has already seen a significant increase in vehicle traffic in recent years.

In fact, the commercial and industrial areas north of Exit 95 remain the most heavily traveled areas in Elmore County, she said. Much of that traffic is tied to the number people driving to hotels, restaurants and service stations located there.

Traffic tends to get snarled along this short highway corridor since each business has at least one entryway or exit in addition to several roads that connect to the state highway.

Parts of American Legion Boulevard have seen a similar increase in traffic problems as commercial growth continues to expand, according to Harper.

"The development of K-Mart and later Wal-Mart significantly changed the traffic patterns in the area and also increased traffic over the years," she said.

At the same time, the study had to consider how the city would deal with additional traffic as this part of town continues to expand.

"We've seen a lot of interest in properties in and around Exit 95, so this planning effort is crucial to support economic development," Harper said.

Referring to a map in her office, she pointed out several tracts of land along American Legion that could one day become new retail businesses, commercial properties or industries. The largest is a 200-acre piece of land directly south of an existing shopping center across from Wal-Mart.

Based on this projected growth, the city would need new avenues to better organize and direct traffic to make it easier and safer for people to drive around this part of town, according to Harper. Part of the solution involves building "loop roads" behind existing and future businesses and industrial sites north of the interstate that would guide vehicle traffic to main roadways equipped with traffic lights.

A similar loop road plan focuses specifically on American Legion Boulevard near Wal-Mart that would guide traffic around current and future development south of Exit 95.

Additional traffic lights along American Legion and Highway 20 are the next step in dealing with increased traffic. The city already has plans in place to install a traffic light at the intersection of American Legion and North and South 18th Streets. It's part of a street construction project that's expected to begin sometime before 2017.

The study also identified the intersection of Highway 20 and Hot Creek Road for its own traffic light. Existing or future roads behind the existing service stations, restaurants and hotels would help control traffic in this area.

Meanwhile, traffic lights are also planned for the intersections of Foothills Avenue and East 8th North Street. However, the proposed lights pose issues since the distance both roads and the Exit 95 off ramp are too close to one another, Harper said. To make either plan work, the exit would need its own set of traffic lights, which is pretty costly, she added.

For now, the Idaho Transportation Department is looking ahead to eventually install lights at the interstate exit. Conduits that would accommodate the signal lights are expected to be installed in 2015 when the state transportation department extends the off ramps.

The long-range traffic study includes recommendations to install additional traffic lights in the vicinity of Wal-Mart and the shopping center across the street, according to Harper. One was identified for the department store's north entrance with a second one planned in the vicinity of its other entrance and the nearby shopping complex.

In addition to traffic flow, the city's long-range study includes plans aimed at improving right-of-way requirements for motorists, pedestrians and bicyclists. A majority of the planned roadway expansions are expected to keep the current four-lane roads that measure 100 feet across which narrow to 80 feet during the transition point near North 18th East Street.

The goal, according to Harper, is using that available lane space to accommodate pedestrians and bicyclists in addition to vehicle traffic without increasing traffic congestion.

Holding up a diagram, Harper showed four different versions to create right-of-way areas that would include bike lanes, sidewalks. One of those proposals includes landscaping that would divide both sides of the road that would enhanced this gateway into Mountain Home.

Pending approval by the city council, Harper hopes this plan can move forward within the next two months so local officials can start submitting grant applications to secure funding to start these improvements.