BOISE, ID — The Idaho Transportation Department (ITD) won a pair of President’s Awards from the American Association of Transportation and Highway Officials (AASHTO). ITD won in the Environment category for a project on US-12 in north-central Idaho and in the Research category for a project in southwestern Idaho on US-95. ITD has won 15 AASHTO President’s Awards since 2010.

The US-12 Environment project involved two bridges on the highway, plus repaving the 50 miles of pavement between the two structures. ITD partnered with Idaho Fish & Game to allow fish to be counted and relocated from the water under the bridges. In addition, all equipment on the project was rinsed before entering the work corridor and inspected by professionals to ensure noxious weeds were not transported outside the project area. The bridge plans also outlined methods to avoid impacting a nearby Native American tribal property.

The Research project on US-95 was the solution to a problem with swelling clay under the roadbed. The clay was swelling up to seven inches in spots and damaging the pavement, thus shortening the life of the roadway, while also creating safety issues. The solution involved the use of geocells, which are typically used for erosion control on the ground’s surface. A research project looking into the viability of using geocells was conducted by Boise State University and sponsored by ITD.