Posted: Thursday, August 5, 2010 12:00 am | Updated: 8:22 pm, Wed Aug 4, 2010.
A major regional transportation initiative that would link the Teton Valley with Idaho Falls, Jackson and the national parks, Grand Targhee Resort and beyond depends on a TIGER.
Teton County is the project sponsor, along with the cities of Driggs and Victor, seeking to garner about $10 million in TIGER II funding for the project.
Administered by the U.S. Department of Transportation, TIGER II (Transportation Investment Generating Economic Recovery) is a competitive grant program for "projects that will have a significant impact on the nation, a metropolitan area or a region," according to the DOT.
The funds would be used for pathway projects, park-and-ride facilities, bus service and bus facilities, according to Driggs Mayor Dan Powers.
"The idea is to establish a real public transportation system here in Teton Valley," he said, "and going out to the bigger communities, such as Rexburg and Idaho Falls."
The project would provide fixed-route bus service between Idaho Falls Airport, the Idaho National Laboratory and Jackson, along with Grand Teton and Yellowstone national parks, according to Kathy Rinaldi, Teton County commissioner. It would also "complete the 300-mile ‘Grand Bikeway' with approximately 50 miles of pathway and bike lane improvements between West Yellowstone, Mont. and Jackson Hole, via Driggs. The goal for the project is to promote economic stimulus through seamless mobility for residents and visitors," she said.
The program, according to Rinaldi, would enhance public transportation by providing needed infrastructure to expand and improve scheduled service. This would include a bus storage and maintenance facility in Driggs; five park-and-ride areas; seven buses with "real-time locator(s) and onboard Wifi," and multiple pathway connections.
The Pioneer Park Transit Center in Victor would tie into the regional transportation program by providing needed infrastructure to the overall system, according to Rinaldi. Funded by nearly $360,000 in stimulus funds through the Idaho Transportation Department, the project is being built by MD Nursery and Landscaping.
The multimodal transportation center's roughly 1.5-acre parking lot will accommodate 114 vehicles for commuters and carpoolers, according to Bill Knight, planning director for the City of Victor. Commuters can catch the START bus from the center. It should be operational by the third week in August, he said.
Separate grant funding is being sought for the second phase of the Victor center, which would include a 1,500 square-foot all-weather shelter, designed by Megan Powers and Rick Baldwin, that would reflect the city's architectural and transportation history, said Knight.
The facility would be the regional system's transit anchor point for the southern end of the Valley, he said.
The regional system would tie into Grand Targhee as well, and having bus service up to Targhee is a key element of the proposal, according to Powers. It would allow visitors to stay in Driggs and take the bus up to Targhee.
"Targhee would likely enter into an agreement with TRPTA (Targhee Regional Public Transportation Authority) to provide shuttle service from Driggs to the resort for both our guests and our employees," said Christina Thomure, sustainability director for Grand Targhee. "Having a local fixed-route system in Teton County, Idaho would help to improve mobility between Idaho Falls, Jackson, Salt Lake, and beyond with Driggs, which helps to bring more people to the area."
A preliminary application for the grant was filed July 26, according to Rinaldi. A full application detailing where the money would go, the economic development and environmental benefits and other components is due by Aug. 23.
"The county would be the administrator of the project, with the costs of administering included in the grant," Rinaldi said. "Because we are considered a rural community, no match is required. The minimum grant size is $1 million."
Results of the grant application won't be known until at least Sept. 15.
"We see this as a regional transportation effort," Powers said."We look at it from the greater Yellowstone-Teton perspective, making it part of this transportation scheme for the whole area. "
To contact Ken Levy e-mail reporter3@tetonvalleynews.net.
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