AASHTO Journal, 11 March 2016
As Idaho road crews continue to dig out from a huge Feb. 18 landslide that closed part of Idaho 14 west of Elk City, the Idaho Transportation Department said it was hiring a contractor specializing in slide-removal work to speed the cleanup of remaining rock and debris.
The ITD said the emergency contract will allow crews to work seven days a week, weather permitting, to reopen the road.
The contract was to “mobilize workers and equipment to the site within 48 hours of the bid opening to begin work,” the announcement said.
With that help, the agency said it expects to see SR-14 to fully reopen to traffic in four to five weeks or by early April – again, weather permitting. The department said it is also “pushing to open at least a single lane to intermittent traffic before then, when it is safe to do so.”
Emergency contract work during daylight hours only would clear most of the slide material, it said, starting with rocks and debris above the slide and concluding with removal of material from the highway below.
By March 4, the ITD said it had removed 2,200 cubic yards of material from the slide site, with its crews working non-stop when conditions allowed. It also opened an access road to the top of the slide to allow material to be removed.
The “ITD and our contractors are doing everything possible to safely remove debris and restore the highway as quickly as possible,” said ITD North-Central District Engineer Dave Kuisti. “Establishing safe access is our priority.”
The agency said the cleanup effort has been a partnership involving the ITD, U.S. Forest Service, Idaho County, the Idaho County Sheriff’s Office, the county road and bridge department, Avista Corp. and Clearwater Potlatch Timber Protection Association.
“If weather allows and the alternate route remains a viable option, the Idaho County Sheriff’s Office will continue to detour area residents around the slide on an old forest service road until Idaho 14 is reopened,” the ITD said.
