More than 2,000 feet of new sidewalk would be built in Cascade under a draft highway investment plan released by the Idaho Transportation Department.
The plan, which ITD expects to finalize by the end of the year, budgets $1.1 million to extend existing sidewalks along both sides of Idaho 55 from Payette Street to Mill Street.
The new sidewalk segment would span about 1,640 feet from Medicap Pharmacy to American Legion Post 60.
The project would also add about 500 feet of new sidewalk along the east side of Idaho 55 from Tackle Tom’s to Lake Cascade Parkway. The west side of the highway already has sidewalks along that segment.
The work would be completed in 2028, according to the draft plan, which charts projects slated for next year through 2032.
Public comments on the draft plan can be made through July 31 by clicking here.
The draft plan outlines how ITD plans to spend more than $600 million per year in road construction work across the state over the next seven years.
Work on Idaho 55 between Eagle and New Meadows accounts for more than $100 million in projects identified by the plan, though not all of that work is guaranteed funding by 2032.
No sidewalk improvements planned for McCall
The plan does not include any sidewalk extensions along Idaho 55 in McCall, but would make about $1 million in pedestrian safety improvements within the city.
Jersey walls, or concrete barrier blocks, would be added along about 2,200 feet of roadway in the city, including along Wooley Avenue from Roosevelt Lane to Davis Avenue. In 2023, a McCall man was killed after being struck by a car while riding his bicycle at night in a bicycle lane along that stretch of roadway.
Jersey walls would also be placed along Deinhard Lane from Commerce Street to the U.S. Post Office entrance, East Lake Street from Fir Street to Hemlock Street, and for about 800 feet along Spring Mountain Boulevard north of Deinhard Lane.
ITD also plans to add more flexible delineators throughout the city, like those used to close the left-turn lane on Railroad Avenue in downtown McCall during the summer.
About 360 reflective delineators, along with pavement striping, would be added in strategic locations along Mission Street, Davis Avenue, and Deinhard Lane.
Cascade passing lanes
The draft plan calls for spending $4.6 million to add northbound and southbound passing lanes on Idaho 55 south of Cascade.
The passing lanes would be between Herrick Lane and Stirrup Lane and could be added in 2032, according to the plan.
Rainbow Bridge replacement
Much of ITD’s planned investment into Idaho 55 over the next seven years is tied to a $60 million project to replace the Rainbow Bridge over the North Fork of the Payette River near Smiths Ferry. That work is expected in 2028 and 2029.
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This summer’s repairs to the Rainbow Bridge, which was built in 1933, are only intended to extend the life of the bridge until the new one is completed, as Valley Lookout reported.
Last year, ITD began preliminary design work for the replacement bridge by drilling 18 holes to test the soil and rock around the bridge.
Pavement projects
Most of Idaho 55 between Eagle and New Meadows would be re-sealed or repaved in the next seven years, under the draft plan.
Nearly $2.5 million would be spent seal coating Idaho 55 from Round Valley to Cascade and from Donnelly to New Meadows in 2032.
Meanwhile, the highway would be repaved from Cascade to Donnelly in 2030 at an estimated cost of about $2.4 million.
Another $3.7 million would be spent seal coating the highway from State Street (Idaho 44) to Horseshoe Bend in 2031.
Projects still to be funded
Several major highway expansion projects that are included in the plan are not yet funded and have no projected construction date.
That includes a $50 million project to expand the intersection of Idaho 55 and Banks-Lowman Road. Conceptual plans call for replacing two existing bridges, widening the roadway, and installing advance warning detectors for a traffic signal that was installed at the intersection earlier this year.
ITD is also planning to expand the highway from two lanes to four lanes between Beacon Light Road and Brookside Lane to reduce congestion. There is no estimated cost for that work.
