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Friday, September 24, 2021

Eagle Drive Bridge Under Scrutiny

 

Kendall Purser
Editor

Recently a letter was sent by the City of Ammon to residents near the Eagle Drive bridge asking for their input about its future. In the letter it stated that 4,000 vehicles use the bridge and pass through the intersection of Eagle and Salmon just to the north of it on a daily basis. 

The letter continued, stating that such a large amount of traffic on such narrow streets was considered unsafe. To give their input, recipients of the letter were encouraged to take a brief, online survey about the future of the intersection and the bridge.

The survey proposed three options for the bridge: 1- Leave it as it is, 2- Restrict the bridge to one direction of travel, or 3- Close the bridge entirely, except for emergency vehicles. Afterward recipients could then offer their suggestions on what to do with the bridge and intersection before submitting the survey.

Some citizens were baffled when they read the letter and took the survey, stating that it didn't seem like that many vehicles used that particular intersection. Upon further investigation, the bulk of traffic appears to be students driving to and from Hillcrest High School, and shoppers going to and from Sandcreek Commons. A brief survey of the intersection showed that while traffic rarely got backed up, there was a steady flow of traffic throughout the day.

One resident stated that in their opinion the intersection was so well used because it offered an alternative to the even busier intersection of 25th East and 17th Street, which is the next closest route to the stores along 25th East. If this bridge were closed, traffic at that intersection would undoubtedly increase.

A Traffic Commission meeting will be held on October 13, 2021 at the City Building at 9 AM to seek further input from residents regarding this matter.

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