Idaho Transportation Dept. to unveil plans for continued highway widening projects

POCATELLO, Idaho (KIFI)– The Idaho Transportation Department (ITD) is hosting two open houses to share preliminary plans for upcoming construction to widen I-15 to three lanes from Northgate Pocatello to Blackfoot and replace highway interchanges.

ITD says the end goal is to add three lanes in both directions to the 51 miles of interstate between Pocatello and Idaho Falls.

The project will be completed in three separate, smaller phases: the first phase includes widening I-15 from 5th Avenue in Pocatello to Northgate Pocatello, phase two will be widening from Northgate to Exit 93 in Blackfoot, and during the final phase, crews will widen the highway from Blackfoot to Exit 116 in Idaho Falls.

ITD will host open houses in Blackfoot and Fort Hall to collect public input on their plans to move into phase two of widening the highway through Blackfoot and replacing both highway interchanges on the stretch of interstate.

"We want comments on that from the community so we can adjust whatever plans that we need to adjust," said Justin Smith, public information officer for ITD's District 5. "...We're bringing preliminary plans for comment, there's still opportunity for their input to change what we're looking at or to improve what we're looking at."

Smith said they are waiting to secure funding for the project from the Transportation Expansion and Congestion Mitigation (TECM) funds, part of Governor Brad Little’s 'Leading Idaho' program. After collecting public feedback and securing funding, construction on the project could begin as early as 2030.

The ITD open houses will be Wednesday, April 30, from 4-6:30 p.m. at the Blackfoot Community Center in Blackfoot, and Thursday, May 1, from 4-6:30 p.m. at the Shoshone-Bannock Convention Center in Fort Hall.

For more information, you can visit the Idaho Transportation Department website.