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passing lane to be added on Winchester Grade
A passing lane will be added to U.S. 95 on Culdesac Canyon beginning Aug. 15 as part of safety and mobility improvements to the roadway in north-central Idaho. The project is expected to finish in October. This $1.14 million project is funded by general fund surplus. A 1.3-mile passing lane will be built on an uphill section of U.S. 95 near the Lapwai Creek Bridge. This project is the first phase of a long-term plan to improve passing opportunities on U.S. 95. It is estimated this stretch serves approximately 3,000 vehicles per day and it is anticipated to increase to approximately 4,740 vehicles per day in the next 20 years. The project also will reduce congestion and delays along the corridor, improving mobility and economic opportunity. This section of U.S. 95 serves a significant amount of Idaho's logging and agriculture industries, as well as regional commerce. The primary partners/stakeholders are Nez Perce County, Lewis County, the city of Culdesac, the city of Winchester, the Nez Perce Tribe and the trucking industry. West Company, of Airway Heights, Washington, is the project’s prime contractor. The Idaho Transportation Board selected road and bridge projects across Idaho in December 2015 for maintenance and repair work. The projects are all funded by the $54.1 million in general fund surplus provided by the Idaho Legislature. Selections came from a pool of projects based on analysis of each project’s return on investment in the areas of safety, mobility, economic opportunity, bridge condition and right-of-way purchases. This is one of the projects that resulted from that action. |
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