KUNA, Idaho — As the Treasure Valley continues to grow, more traffic is putting pressure on corridors like SH-69 to Kuna. Now, the Idaho Transportation Department is planning a major expansion of Meridian Road to accommodate the growing traffic demands.
"Bumper to bumper from about the time you get off the freeway, well before you get off the freeway, all the way down to about Columbia or a little bit past," says Lauren Anderson, describing the daily traffic congestion along Meridian Road during rush hour.
Anderson, who has lived in Kuna since 1986, has witnessed significant changes to the area's infrastructure over the decades.
"It's just something we have to deal with. It's everyday life," he says. "Kuna-Meridian Highway used to be two lanes, no center lane, and that was challenging at times too."
The road evolved from its original two lanes to its current five-lane configuration through projects in 1991 and 2001. Now, ITD is looking to expand it further to seven lanes total — three in each direction plus a raised median to separate the two sides.
A smaller five-lane expansion is planned from Kuna Road to Orchard Avenue.
"That's gonna take some getting used to," says Anderson.
Mark Wasdahl, a Senior Project Manager with ITD, explains that this project aims to get ahead of the area's rapid growth.
"Too often, we play catch-up. The growth hits, and we're trying to get a little bit ahead of the curve here," Wasdahl says.
The expansion project will serve as a guide for future development along the corridor.
"It's not your standard 'we're going to take this whole corridor and build it out.' It's more of how do we build this piece by piece," Wasdahl explains.
Building it piece by piece means working with future developers who will contribute to building parts of the project.
"Commercial developers want to see how they're going to interact with the roadway. We'd like to have a good interaction with the houses that are being built," says Wasdahl.
According to ITD, the population living within two miles of Highway 69 is expected to grow by 55% in the next 25 years, which will significantly increase traffic on the already congested corridor.
"We know what we need to build out there to handle the future traffic. It's just what it looks like in the end, how it works for the people who use it," says Wasdahl.
"Get the big picture and let us know what little pieces we may have missed," Wasdahl added.
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