warren-wagon-road-locator-mapBy Steve Stuebner
Valley County Pathways encourages Valley County residents and second-home owners to attend public meetings scheduled for Tuesday, Jan. 10, in McCall to learn about the planned reconstruction of 5.5 miles of Warren Wagon Road and push for pedestrian safety and bike lanes as part of the project.

There will be an afternoon session from 1-2:30 p.m. on Jan. 10th and an evening session from 6:30-8:30 p.m. Both meetings will be held at the Payette National Forest supervisor’s office, 500 N. Mission Street in McCall.

Federal highway officials and Valley County Road Department officials will be on hand to present information about the project and answer questions.

Valley County Pathways and the Central Idaho Mountain Biking Association (CIMBA) have been promoting that the project include bike lanes of at least 3 feet wide to accommodate pedestrian safety on this popular and busy road that leads to the North Beach unit of Ponderosa State Park and points north in the Payette National Forest.

As it is now, this section of Warren Wagon Road has no shoulder and presents a safety hazard to walkers, runners and cyclists.

Federal highway standards call for a minimum 4-foot width for bike lanes. In the case of the Warren Wagon Road project, the right of way is limited in some areas because of granite cliffs next to the mountain and roadway. We understand that space is limited, and if Federal Highways designed the project to dynamite granite cliffs to make more room, it would drive up the cost to more than $10 million beyond the existing cost, and Valley County would be required to maintain loose and falling rock for years to come.

Previous letter-writing efforts have succeeded in convincing the Federal Highway officials that pedestrian safety and bike lanes are an important part of the project. Thank you for helping with that.

However, we need a strong turnout at these meetings to continue to show support for pedestrian safety and solid bike lanes.

Please spread the word to your friends!

For information about the project, contact Erin Chipps, environmental specialist, [email protected] (360) 619-7637, Dan Slanina, project manager, [email protected] (360) 619-7617, Steve Stuebner with VC Pathways, [email protected], 208-484-0295, or Michelle Reagan with CIMBA, [email protected].

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