Planning
Canyon Highway District No. 4 (CHD4) is engaged with local, regional, and state transportation agencies to develop near- and long-term planning efforts to improve your transportation network, and provide for future transportation needs.
Canyon County Western Route Arterial Corridor Study
Click on the links above to see a transcription of written comments received July 14 - Aug 15, 2011 following the CCWR Open House Meetings, and a brief statistical summary of the comments.
Two addtional comment letters (too long to transcribe) are provided with permission of the owners:
Canyon Highway District is currently assessing public comments and gathering additional input from stakeholders groups.
Open House Exhibits
Exhibits presented at the July 14 and July 19, 2011 Open House Meetings are available below:
- Comment Form (word document)
- Comment Form (pdf)
- Two-County Corridor Map
- Other Studies
- CCWR Study: Purpose and Need
- CCWR Study Area
- What is an Expressway?
- How Corridor will be preserved: Canyon County Code
- Local Knowlege
- Access Management
- Decision Criteria
- Technical Advisory Committee
- TAC Draft Alternatives
- TAC Draft Rankings
- What's Next
- Your Input Counts!
Comment forms may be mailed or delivered to Canyon or Notus-Parma Highway District Offices, submitted at either of the open house meetings, or emailed to info@canyondh4.org . Please return comments to either highway district before August 14, 2011.
Canyon County Western Route (CCWR) Arterial Corridor Study
In 2010, CHD4 began preliminary work on a study to identify portions of a future high-speed, limited access expressway corridor intended to link southeastern Ada County with north central Canyon County. This route has been proposed by COMPASS and local agencies as an alternative to I-84, from Black's Creek interchange west along Kuna-Mora Road to the Ada/Canyon county line, then west along Bowmont Road meandering to the southwest corner of Lake Lowell, then north to I-84 between Middleton and Sand Hollow. See the Two County Corridor Map .
Both ACHD and Nampa Hwy District have begun or completed studies on their portions of this future expressway.
What's an Expressway?
An expressway is a type of roadway classification. It indicates a divided, high-speed, high-priority, high-capacity roadway. The closest example we have in the Treasure Valley is a freeway, like Interstate 84. An expressway has interchanges, like a freeway, rather than at-grade intersections (stoplights). An expressway has limited access, like a freeway, typically at one to two mile intervals.
Why do we need an alternative to I-84?
At the moment, we don't need another I-84. As the valley continues to grow, however, demand on the I-84 corridor will continue to increase. Projections detailed in the current Long Range Transportation Plan (created by COMPASS) reveal large population and transportation demand increases are likely in the next 25-50 years, even without the 5% annual growth rates the valley saw between 1998 and 2008. Funding for new transportation infrastructure is already scarce, and the cost of acquiring land for new roadways can account for a significant portion of a project budget.
Canyon Hwy District, in concert with other regional agencies, hopes to reduce future project costs and provide direction for future development by identifying a preferred route for a future expressway (35-50 years from now), so that right-of-way can be preserved during the development process. Identifying this route now would also provide the District with guidance for developing interim plans for a two- or three-lane arterial along this alignment, to provide for medium-range (25 year) transportation needs.
Study Area
The study area for Canyon Hwy District's portion of the CCWR corridor extends generally from Marsing Road (between Lake Shore Dr. and SH 55) north across Karcher Road (SH 55) and Simplot Blvd (SH 19) to the Boise River, and east-west between Farmway Road and Beet Road. North of the Boise River, the Notus-Parma Hwy District study area generally forms a triangular area, with the City of Notus, the Sand Hollow exit, and the Middleton exit as its corners. See CCWR Study Area for details.
What's Next?
Over the previous six months, CHD4 has met with representatives from Canyon County, Idaho Transportation Department, Caldwell, Nampa, Middleton, Greenleaf, Notus, and the valley's other Highway Districts to look at the broad scope of the expressway corridor study. We'll be meeting in the upcoming months with stakeholders groups, including an environmental panel, the various irrigation districts in the study area, two railroads, local elected officials, property owners groups, and the general public.
Canyon and Notus-Parma HIghway Districts will gather feedback received at the two open house meetings in July, and determine if or how to proceed with further refinement of a corridor alignment. This feedback may identify additional areas of study or possible alternatives not previously considered. Given sufficient public support for the concept, the highway districts may proceed with further refinement of alternatives, which could be presented to the public for comment as early as Fall 2011.
Contact Us
Let us hear what you think about the corridor plan, and if there is other information you'd like to see posted here. Currently, the comment form at the bottom of this page is the best way to contact us on the project.
Community Planning Organization of Southwest Idaho (COMPASS)
The Community Planning Association of Southwest Idaho (COMPASS) is an association of local governments working together to plan for the future of the region. The agency conducts this work as the metropolitan planning organization (MPO) for northern Ada County and Canyon County. The federal government requires the formation of an MPO when an urban area reaches 50,000 people.
COMPASS home page 2030 Functional Classification Map
Comments
Do you have comments for our planning committee? Fill out the form below! (all fields are required)