BOISE, Idaho — If you are a commuter in the Treasure Valley, the idea of a light rail or transit system has probably been brought to your attention. If you have to drive across city lines for work, school or other activities, you probably understand why.
On Tuesday night, the Community Planning Association of Southwest Idaho (COMPASS) held its first education series presentation of 2021. During the presentation, the group discussed what a high-capacity transit system could mean for the Treasure Valley.
Most likely, a light rail, a commuter rail, or a rapid bus transit service would run parallel to Interstate 84 between Caldwell and Boise.
During Tuesday's meeting, the group explored what would need to happen in order to bring a transportation service like this to the Treasure Valley. To do so, a 2009 study was revisited and updated.
This new study identified the dramatic changes that have occurred throughout the Treasure Valley over the years, from population increase to congestion and travel times.
The goal of this study was to find ways to improve transit connectivity as well as determine financial feasibility, according to vice president of AECOM Bob Post.
“We will be working with federal agencies, looking at the thresholds for when we need to get different pieces in place for the high capacity transit and really flushing out the options more," a representative from COMPASS said during Tuesday's meeting. "The big next step is a high-capacity transit survey. We want to hear from the public about what people in the region want from a high-capacity transit and which features are important."
The survey is currently open to the public and can be filled out until Feb. 27, 2021.
Among the determining factors, the cost of the transit system is the most prominent.
"The [light rail] options we looked at based on comparable costs, and this would be a fairly length light rail line from downtown [Boise] to Caldwell, that’s fairly lengthy," Post said. "Those costs are in the range of slightly over $2 billion, so you can look at this range and say these lower ones are in the range of $200-$300 million."
The cost of each alternative option being considered is based on two or three similar projects. For example, the rapid bus transit service most similar to what could be done in the Treasure Valley is based on the system in Vancouver, Wash.
COMPASS uses their cost estimate, convert the estimate into current costs and make adjustments to fit the needs of the city.
An efficient, functioning high-capacity transit system is likely more than 20 years away from reaching the Treasure Valley, according to COMPASS. The time to plan for it, however, is right now.
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