Editor's Note: This news item was retrieved and first published through The Idaho Statesman's website.
Construction has begun to widen one of the most congested routes between Meridian and Caldwell in Idaho. The Idaho Transportation Department (ITD) began work to widen U.S. 20/26 (Chinden Boulevard) from Idaho 16 to Linder Road, from two lanes to five this November.
According to Idaho Statesman writer Katie Talerico, "The work is just the first phase of a larger Boise-area project that will widen Chinden from Eagle Road to Interstate 84 to a four-lane divided highway by 2032, and to six lanes by 2040." ITD prioritized the project because of an increased number of crashes between 2012 and 2016. In those four years, there were 475 crashes between Star and Eagle roads, of which 345 were read-end crashes. ITD next plans to widen Chinden Boulevard from Locust Grove Road to Eagle Road. The timeline on the project is as follows:- -Late 2019: Idaho 16 to Linder Road
- -2020: Locust Grove to Eagle Road
- -2020: Linder Road to Meridian Road
- -2021: Meridian Road to Locust Grove
- -2021: I-84 to Middleton Road
- -2024: Star Road to Idaho 16
Learn more on the Boise area road work by going to the full article.