The drive from the Treasure Valley to points north along the main route, Idaho Highway 55, is about to get a little longer. The Idaho Transportation Department is giving the roadway some overdue maintenance.
The road deals with a lot. There’s snow and ice in the winter, mudslides in spring and the year-round problem of potholes. The weather has taken a toll on the roadway, and ITD plans to shut down a stretch of it for repaving.
An announcement from the department says the repairs will start at mile marker 91 – a little ways north of the Banks Lowman turnoff – and extend to Smith’s Ferry. According to the Statesman, the work could begin as soon as Monday, May 6 if the weather cooperates.
The department realizes that with warmer weather, more and more people are drawn to the lakes of Valley County. Repaving work on Highway 55 will start at midnight on Mondays and last through noon on Fridays. Those looking to get out of town for a quick weekend getaway won’t be impacted by the work.
During the hours crews are repaving the road, the highway will be shut down to just one lane. Flaggers or temporary signals will regulate traffic to pass in each direction at about fifteen minute intervals. While ITD says to bank on delays of no more than a quarter of an hour, allowing more time isn’t a bad idea.
The Highway 55 repaving effort is expected to take around two months, so if crews start in early May, it could be done by late June.
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