Montana Department of Transportation

The Montana Department of Transportation (MDT) and the City of Whitefish have initiated a community-wide transportation planning process. This process will assist both entities, as well as the community at large, in guiding transportation infrastructure and implementation over the planning horizon (the year 2030). The City of Whitefish has numerous transportation related issues that affect the efficiency and operational parameters of the existing transportation system. Additionally, there are numerous available lands directly adjacent to the City proper that could develop over the future years and possibly result in additional transportation impacts to the community’s residents. This is coupled with the lack of good east/west connectivity in the community, as well as limited crossings of the Whitefish River. All of this has necessitated the urgency of this planning effort.

Although a variety of transportation planning has taken place in the community over the years, this is the first comprehensive, citywide effort. Transportation is a major concern to city residents today. The city expects concern to remain high as growth continues and the challenges of accommodating travel needs become more difficult. A comprehensive Transportation Plan will provide an opportunity for city and state officials, staff and residents to work together to develop the innovative approaches necessary to plan and implement a transportation system that will serve the city of Whitefish well into the future.

A component of this traditional transportation planning effort is the preparation of an Urban Corridor Study of US Highway 93 through the downtown. This component of the overall project will focus on the downtown environment and both local and through traffic needs. Coordination with the community’s Downtown Master Plan and the recommendations for livability, aesthetics, and land use will be conducted. This work effort will review the information completed in the U.S. Highway 93 - Somers to Whitefish Final Environmental Impact Statement (1994). This corridor study sub-component to the overall community’s transportation needs will be completed to update all relevant information concerning traffic flow, and analyze design options under "pre-NEPA" guidance and criteria. The goal would be to analyze reasonable design options and develop a preferred design option based on the original EIS and ROD’s purpose and need. The corridor limits being studied are those previously examined under the Whitefish Urban Project which begins on U.S. Highway 93 at 13th Street, continues north on Spokane Avenue to 2nd Street, continues west on 2nd Street, and ends just west of Baker Avenue.