Troy, Potlatch want safer routes for pedestrians
Aug. 10—Troy and Potlatch both received money from the state to make roads safer for students walking to and from school.
The two communities recently received $250,000 each from Idaho's Children Pedestrian Safety Program, which awarded a total of $10 million in grants to 45 cities and towns across the state.
A news release from the Idaho Walk Bike Alliance says the grant program is intended to support sidewalks, crosswalks and pathways that improve safety for children and adults who walk or bike to school.
In Troy, the city wants to extend walking paths and sidewalks throughout Big Meadow Road, a primary route leading to Troy Elementary School and Troy Junior-Senior High School.
Sabrina Moyer, Troy city clerk and treasurer, said the road has a partial "safe zone" with a sidewalk, walking path and lights near the school. With this new grant money, she said, the city will begin extending that safe zone to Idaho State Highway 8.
"The whole town is excited about it because it's a concern to many," she said about the project.
She said that without walking paths, Big Meadow Road can become even more dangerous in the winter when snow accumulation forces students to walk in the middle of the street. Additionally, she said many drivers use that road to bypass Highway 8 when driving through town.
Moyer said the project will be completed in phases, with the first phase scheduled to be finished in 2023. Troy has already hired an engineer and construction will likely start in the spring. Moyer said the goal of the first phase is to construct a walking path from Highway 8 to Michael Drive or possibly North Main Street.
The city is looking for other grants and donations to complete the rest of the phases, Moyer said.
Potlatch Mayor David Brown said his city will use the grant to fund a new sidewalk on 10th Street, which is also a walking and biking route for students heading to Potlatch Junior-Senior High School.
He said there are currently incomplete sidewalk paths on that street. The city is looking to construct slightly less than 1,500 feet of sidewalk.
"It's really great," he said of the grant. "One of our council members has been wanting this done for 10 years."
He anticipates construction will be completed next summer. In the future, he said Potlatch wants to find more grants for additional sidewalk projects, including extending a sidewalk on Sixth Street from city hall to the city limit.
Kuipers can be reached at akuipers@dnews.com.
