BANKS, Idaho — Highway 55 from the Treasure Valley to McCall sees a lot of traffic, especially on weekends during the summer, making it difficult for drivers coming from Garden Valley to get past the intersection at Banks.
I recreate frequently in this area because it is my favorite place to kayak, but I stopped going up there on Sundays because there is so much traffic. I’ve seen the Banks-Lowman Road backed up for miles.
“It can equate to a two-hour wait when it starts around 11:00 a.m. on a Sunday,” said Lisa Willey who grew up in Garden Valley. “If we get stuck in that traffic, it pretty much ruins your day if you are going to town for anything.”
Residents in Garden Valley plan their lives around the traffic congestion as much as possible. Lisa Willey’s family also has a Life Flight membership because they know an accident will shut down their escape route for hours.
“We have a Life Flight membership for our family for that reason alone,” said Willey. “If something happens on a day that we can’t get out of the Valley, we need to know that we can get medical care.”
Help may be on the way after the Idaho Transportation Board approved a plan that will budget four million dollars for an engineering study and a design plan for a new intersection at Banks with an interim traffic signal in 2024.
This comes after a study was done using funding through a land grant this spring and several meetings with residents in Boise County.
"They have talked about a lot of different options of what they can do and a lot of different solutions," said Willey. "However, because the intersection is so unique, it’s a hard one."
The Idaho Transportation Department has been using flaggers on weekends in the summer and, according to their data on a weekend from July, there was a count of nearly 9,000 vehicles traveling north on a Friday and more than 10,000 coming back on Sunday.
The roads through these mountain areas pass through canyons where space is often limited to only the river and the road. The intersection being evaluated is where the North Fork of the Payette River and the South Fork meet.
The design plan would require removing both bridges over the river to widen the intersection making it safe and keeping traffic moving. It would feature more sight distance, an adaptive warning system, and a stoplight.
While the project wouldn't happen for years, the anticipated cost of the project would be between $40 and $50 million which a spokesperson told us. Right now they only have funds for the design, not the construction.
"Our concern with the signal is making sure the signal is there and it doesn't cause collisions on Highway 55," said Willey. "But, if it makes it where we can get out, I think that is probably a good thing."
We caught up with Willey at the school where the Garden Valley Wolverines middle school football team finished off an undefeated season with a 34-8 victory over Adrian.
