Bypass traffic numbers await summer count

Big rigs may not be using the U.S. 93 Alternate Route much, but that hasn't stopped local drivers from using the road west of Kalispell.

The southern half of the bypass opened in mid-November. A public informational meeting on the northern portion of the bypass will be held next month.

The bypass was designed to cut down the number of semi-trailers going through downtown Kalispell.

Kalispell resident Karen Breck said she drives the route every day and doesn't see large trucks using it.

She wonders whether three roundabout traffic-calming devices installed on the road are what keep trucks from driving the route, which runs from U.S. 93 south of the city to U.S. 2 West. But others think it's because the larger trucks aren't headed west to Libby.

Dan Higgins, who drives for Frontier Trucking at 2422 U.S. 2 West, said he has seen a few big trucks on the route, but not many. He usually drives it in his pickup and doesn't normally head south with a big rig.

He likes the bypass but said he believes most trucks, which come from the south, are headed east on U.S. 2 or make deliveries and go back south toward Missoula.

Barry Ballenger, who also drives for Frontier Trucking, speculates that many truckers aren't using it when heading north because they come out on U.S. 2 too far away from Main Street. And many probably aren't aware of the route, he said, noting there is only one "U.S. 93 Alternate Route" sign on U.S. 93 South. Another sign lets drivers know that the route is the way to U.S. 2.

"You just barely get the truck speeded up and you have to slow down," Ballenger said. "You've got to swing way out [to get through a roundabout] and if you have a longer trailer the ‘dually' will hit the curb. There's hardly enough room.

"When you think of a bypass, you think you can cruise, but you can't."

On the positive side, Ballenger said he has come to like the route because it's still quicker than driving Main Street through Kalispell. Frontier Trucking is located west of the U.S. 93 Alternate Route/U.S. 2 West intersection, so it makes sense for him to use it.

Ballenger said he didn't like the bypass at first but it has since grown on him.

Todd Gardner, owner of Gardner's RV and Trailer Center, said he has seen some tractor-trailers on the bypass. His business is located on the corner where the U.S. 93 Alternate Route meets U.S. 93 South.

"I see a fair amount of bigger rigs on it," he said. "I see a lot of traffic [in general]. I use the bypass every day when I go to work." Gardner added that he sees a lot of "mid-range trucks," such as dump trucks and service delivery trucks, on the alternate route.

Ed Toavs, a district construction engineer for the Montana Department of Transportation, said the roundabouts were designed with big rigs in mind. "We haven't had any complaints," he said.

He said the roundabouts have a stamped center portion that is raised above the outer lane. The center portion is designed as a truck apron that tractor trailers can use as needed.

"They were designed quite large," he said.

Toavs said the Department of Transportation will not start counting traffic on the U.S. 93 Alternate Route until the summer months. It will be a months-long project, he said. "The percentage of trucks will be the first data we get."

The southern half of the bypass cost $22.6 million.

The northern half is planned to continue the route from U.S. 2 across Two Mile Drive, Three Mile Drive and Four Mile Drive, eventually connecting with West Reserve Drive near U.S. 93.

There are three parcels of land left to purchase on Two Mile Drive, state public information officer Lori Ryan said in an email.

About $34.6 million is needed to complete the northern route, she said.

As far as whether the funding is in place for the project and what the target date is for completion, Ryan said those questions are dependent upon the federal highway bill for fiscal year 2011. That bill is pending in Congress.

The Montana Department of Transportation will host a public informational meeting at 7 p.m. on Monday, April 11, at the Hilton Garden Inn. Officials will discuss the Two Mile/U.S. 93 Alternate Route intersection and an interim construction design for all of the northern route.

Reporter Caleb Soptelean may be reached at 758-4483 or by email at csoptelean@dailyinterlake.com.