Outdated, stressed. Some of Idaho’s ‘most deficient’ bridges get funding for upgrades

Idaho’s first batch of locally managed bridges is set for repair or replacement after tens of millions of dollars in state surplus funds were approved Tuesday to begin working through the backlog of critical infrastructure needs.

The initial round of funds amounts to $38 million, or about 20% of the one-time pot of discretionary dollars set aside for the purpose by Gov. Brad Little and approved by the Legislature earlier this year. In total, $200 million will go toward fixing some of the state’s hundreds of bridges that are outdated or in poor condition and located within local jurisdictions.

The Local Highway Technical Assistance Council (LHTAC), a 12-member board made up of elected and appointed officials across Idaho, will commit portions of the remaining $162 million for other local bridge upgrades in the coming months. On Tuesday, the council unanimously approved addressing several dozen bridges in the first group of repairs and replacements from a list of 221 submitted for possible funding.

“This first round is the most deficient bridges,” Ken Kanownik, LHTAC’s deputy administrator, told the council during its Tuesday virtual meeting. “They’re quick to design, bundle, award, construct or they’re construction ready.”

Bridge projects that staff also ranked high on the list, need greater design and review or require more complex construction will be prioritized for funding at future meetings, Kanownik said.

The local bridge funds resulted from the state’s record $1.9 billion surplus in its most recent fiscal year. Little dedicated the money to the infrastructure improvements as part of his Leading Idaho initiative.

“The continued prosperity of our farmers, ranchers, and the folks who work in the woods depends on a safe, efficient system of roads and bridges,” Little said in his State of the State address in January. “We have a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to fully fund known needs — to maintain our roads and bridges permanently — with no new taxes.”

Funds dispersed across six districts

Most of the funds approved Tuesday will go toward full bridge replacements. That includes 39 bridges throughout Idaho, with comparable amounts of money spread across the Idaho Transportation Department’s six districts. Each replacement averages an estimate of about $1 million.

“Really, (no) stone has been unturned to get to this point, making sure that the proper recommendations were coming to council,” Laila Kral, LHTAC’s administrator, told the council. “We did not want to go faster than we did, so that we made sure to really evaluate all of the options.”

ITD’s District 3 covers southwest Idaho, which includes Ada and Canyon counties, and about 40% of the state’s population. In the first round of funding, three bridges in the district were awarded $3 million, including two in Canyon County and one in neighboring Payette County.

ITD District 1, covering North Idaho, and District 6, which includes Idaho Falls and much of East Idaho, each received $7 million of funding for bridge projects in the first round. Along with District 6, ITD District 4, which encompasses Twin Falls and south-central Idaho, were green-lit for the most projects, each with eight.

About 50 other local bridges were approved Tuesday for more testing at a total cost of $550,000. Technical crews will decide whether those bridges require minor repairs or full replacements, or, in some cases, are in better shape than initially thought and can be pulled from the group presently load-posted, which means they are weight restricted out of concerns for safety.

“We noticed that several of the bridges could possibly have their posting removed by reevaluating the existing load rating,” Scott Wood, a staff engineer, told the council Tuesday. “All of these testing bridges are in at least satisfactory condition, so they are not in imminent failure, and none are in poor condition.”

All told, Idaho currently has more than 400 bridges that are load-posted or rated in poor condition — about half of which not included on the initial list for funding consideration, Kral previously told the Idaho Statesman. LHTAC hopes to address about a third of the overall total through the $200 million in surplus funds, which must be spent or obligated within three years, she said.

For a list of bridge projects approved in the first round, visit the LHTAC’s website. The next round of funding recommendations from the full list of 221 submitted projects could come as early as LHTAC’s next regular meeting, scheduled for Sept. 15.

“If there is an opportunity for more funding to come down the pipe, we are ready to keep moving down this list,” Kral said. “But we are ready now to move forward on any of those 221 projects at any time.”