Riverside Road project receives funds

The City of Bonners Ferry is pleased to announce that the 2.7 million dollar Riverside Road improvement project has been selected for funding under the Federal Lands Access Program (FLAP).

The project will reconstruct Riverside Road from the UP railroad crossing to the city limits, and will include an eight foot wide paved shared-use path on the river side of the road, 11 foot travel lanes, and a four foot shoulder on the inland side of the road. The project profile will transition at the city limits to match the Boundary County FLAP project that is scheduled for construction in 2021. Once both projects are completed, there will be continuous walking and biking facilities from downtown Bonners Ferry to the Kootenai Wildlife Refuge.

“This project fulfills the community’s long standing desire to have greater walking and biking facilities along the Kootenai River,” said Bonners Ferry Mayor David Sims. “It will be a great benefit for our residents, and also provide an economic benefit for our community. The program is extremely competitive, and the project is among only ten applications in Idaho that were funded.”

The Federal Lands Access Program was established to improve transportation facilities that provide access to Federal lands. The project will be designed and constructed over the next five years, and will provide improved access to the Kootenai National Wildlife Refuge, U.S. Forest Service property, and BLM property. The city is partnering with the Bonners Ferry Urban Renewal Agency to provide the required matching funds for the project. Letters of support for the project were provided by the Army Corps of Engineers, Kootenai Tribe of Idaho, Boundary County, Boundary Area Transportation Team, Kootenai Valley Resource Initiative, International Selkirk Loop, and the Rotary Club of Bonners Ferry.