Please share your thoughts on the proposed concepts for the Baldy Extension and U.S. Highway 2 Corridor.

SANDPOINT MULTIMODAL TRANSPORTATION MASTER PLAN -- PART 3

SOLUTIONS AND CONCEPTS FOR PUBLIC REVIEW AND INPUT

BALDY EXTENSION

Keys Issues and Considerations

• Connecting more directly to Highway 2 will relieve truck traffic/congestion on Division Avenue, enabling improvements to Division Ave, specifically, improved access to schools and community destinations.
• East-west grid network is non-existent in the area which forces more traffic and congestion north-south, through neighborhoods on Boyer Avenue (south of Larch) and along Division.
• Baldy is the primary collector serving the industrial areas with heavier use by trucks along Baldy, Great Northern, and Woodland.  Truck users have limited routes to US-95 – current truck route is on Division Avenue (a roadway where truck traffic mixes with grade school traffic and residential traffic) and Baldy Mountain Road.
• Baldy Mountain Road/Boyer Avenue as well as US-2/ Boyer Avenue intersections experiences vehicle delay as a result of the higher traffic volumes, as well as frequent train crossings.
• Safety and overall mobility concerns exist when truck routes also serve as the primary corridor for schools.

Recommended Solutions

• Extend Baldy Mountain Road at the Boyer Avenue intersection to the east, connecting to Fifth Ave/US-2.
• Construct a new signal at the Baldy Mountain Rd & Boyer Ave intersection to support recently approved and anticipated growth to the north. The new signal will be coordinated with the railroad crossing to eliminate vehicle queuing onto the tracks.
• Construct a new High-T intersection at the new Baldy Mountain Rd & Fifth Ave/US-2 intersection. The High-T traffic signal will favor traffic flow on Fifth Ave/US-2 by not stopping the northbound traffic on Fifth Ave/US-2, they will maintain free flow, and the southbound traffic will only stop when the eastbound left-turn traffic on the Baldy Mountain Road extension is needing to be served.

US HIGHWAY 2 CORRIDOR

Keys Issues and Considerations

• Numerous access points (driveways and roadway connections) along the corridor create a substantial amount of conflict areas which increases the risk for crashes and diminishes efficient traffic flow.
• Roadways intersecting from different angles at US-2 create large and confusing intersections that are not intuitive to motorists and active transportation users alike. These locations also create conditions that could increase the risk for crashes. 

Recommended Solutions

• Restricting many of the intersections to right-in and right-out will reduce the conflict points at those locations and provide more consistent and efficient traffic flow and improve pedestrian safety along the corridor.
• Boyer Ave & US-2
  • Realign the intersection slightly to the northeast to enable a more perpendicular connection to US-2 to create better sight-lines for safety, longer storage areas for vehicles to queue, shorter crossing distances through the intersection for more efficient traffic flow and shorter crossings for the pedestrians and bicyclists.
• Ontario St & US-2
  • Construct new left-turn lanes on US-2
  • Realign the crosswalk on the north side of the intersection (crossing US-2) to be perpendicular to the roadway – this creates a shorter crossing distance for the active transportation users and helps them see oncoming traffic easier.
• Olive Ave & US-2
  • Restrict this intersection to right-in, right-out movements only
  • Close the connection of Michigan Street to US-2 on the south side of US-2 – this helps reduce conflicts on the roadway given its close proximity to the Olive Ave intersection
  • Michigan Street becomes a one-way road in the westbound direction from Olive Avenue to Division Avenue.
• Ella Ave & US-2
  • On the north side of US-2, extend/connect Ella Avenue to US-2
  • This will be the optimal location for a future traffic signal given its spacing between the Division Avenue and the Boyer Avenue traffic signals.
  • Create new left-turn lanes on US-2
• Marion Ave & US-2 – restrict to right-in, right-out movements only
• Superior St & Florence Ave
  • Create new left-turn lanes on US-2 at the Florence Avenue intersection
  • Restrict Superior Street to right-in, right-out movements only on the north side of US-2