Fernan Lake Road revamp moves forward
After years of delay and dispute, a proposal to reconstruct Fernan Lake Road continues to move forward.
Nearly 11 miles of the narrow, curving road will be rebuilt beginning in 2007, according to a proposal by the Federal Highway Administration.
The project was first proposed in the mid-1990s and construction was originally expected to be finished by last year. Concerns over impacts to the lake and surrounding property prompted officials to conduct a full-blown environmental analysis.
A draft of the analysis was released at the end of May and concluded that any harm to the lake or nearby residents and wildlife is outweighed by the need to improve the road’s safety. Between 160 and 185 crashes over the next 25 years would be prevented if the Fernan Lake Road were widened, guard rails installed and some of its blind corners straightened, according to the report.
“The main issue is safety,” said Sajid Aftab, project manager with the Federal Highway Administration’s office in Vancouver, Wash.
Cost is expected to be between $9 million and $14 million, Aftab said. The federal government is paying for the project because the road is part of the U.S. Forest Service network.
An average of 810 cars, pickup trucks, campers and logging trucks per day travel the road near Fernan Village and along the lake, according to the report. This makes it the busiest road in the Coeur d’Alene River Ranger District of the Idaho Panhandle National Forests. It’s also one of the most dangerous – in the first two miles of the road there have been at least 15 serious accidents in recent history, including a 1998 crash that killed three local teenagers.
The East Side Highway District maintains the road and reports that it has “the poorest condition of all the roads it maintains,” according to the environmental analysis. The road is too narrow for a snowplow and a school bus to pass at the same time.
Fernan Lake Road is popular because it gives easy access to more than 6,000 acres of national forest. The roadway also provides easy access – albeit very little parking – for countless anglers who fish from the lake’s shoreline.
“It’s one of the major access points to the forest,” said Dave O’Brien, spokesman for the Idaho Panhandle National Forests. “We definitely want to see public safety increased.”
Ten alternative routes were explored for the road, but a committee of planning officials has selected the road’s current path as the best route. The final decision will not be made until December, after the public has had a chance to comment on the proposal, Aftab said.
Under the proposal, the road will be widened by about 2 feet and drainage canals will be installed to reduce runoff to the lake. The route doesn’t have enough space to add a bicycle lane, which has been a popular request, Aftab said. “Filling the lake is not an option.”
Construction would temporarily cause lake turbidity and sediment to increase, according to the draft environmental analysis. Construction would not occur within a mile of bald eagle nesting sights until after Aug. 15, when chicks have presumably left the nest.
After the final decision has been made, federal officials will enter into negotiations with local property owners for right-of-way, Aftab said.
“I’m not expecting or anticipating any homes to be removed or damaged,” Aftab said. “There will be some property or right-of-way take.”