ITD approves $200K for Long Bridge replacement study
SANDPOINT — The Idaho Transportation Department announced Wednesday that its transportation board had approved $200,000 for a Long Bridge replacement study.
According to a Dec. 11 news release, the study is expected to start in 2025 and will include public outreach. The department said it will seek grant funding to finish the study and enable design before any construction is done.
The announcement came about two months after ITD presented a preferred concept to expand a 6-mile section of U.S. Highway 95 immediately south of the Long Bridge to a four-lane divided roadway. On ITD’s website for the concept, the department stated it intended to expand the Sagle corridor before renovating the Long Bridge because it received repairs to extend its lifespan in 2021.
During an Oct. 16 open house put on by ITD in Sagle, residents expressed concern about traffic on the crossing and worried that the two-lane Long Bridge would act as a bottleneck for a four-lane road through Sagle.
“Up until now, we have been performing maintenance projects to delay replacing this expensive structure until it reached 100 years old,” District Engineer Damon Allen said of the bridge, which was constructed in 1981. “But as we’ve looked to widen US-95 south of town, we’ve heard from the public that they want us to look at this sooner rather than later.”
Exact costs are yet to be identified, but ITD listed the initial estimate for building the northbound half of a four-lane Long Bridge, including a bike and pedestrian facility, as at least $225 million.
Since ITD has not secured funding for the design or construction of a new Long Bridge, the current $200,000 allotment for the 2025 study is one of many steps to come before the bridge is renovated or replaced.
“This money will allow staff to begin preliminary planning and pursue grant applications for design,” Allen said.