Updates from the Field: Charting the Future of Infrastructure Financing in Idaho
Idaho is a fast-growing state whose economy relies on the movement of goods and a dependable transportation network that keeps communities and commerce connected. Idaho’s economy is largely driven by agriculture, manufacturing, food processing, timber and mining – each requiring dependable multimodal corridors spanning the state’s diverse geography. Expanding industries are drawing new businesses and residents to Idaho, increasing the demands on infrastructure shared by transit and freight. Keeping pace with growing demands while increasing resilience in these systems is critical, but often constrained by funding limitations.
Our work in Idaho through the Regional Infrastructure Accelerator helps address this by providing technical assistance and education alongside our local partners. Through targeted project support, we aim to facilitate economic growth through transit development, increase freight rail movement and advance rural highway projects through innovative financing. In this month’s blog, we’re sharing the perspectives of our Idaho-based partner organizations - Local Highway Technical Assistance Council and Valley Regional Transit - on how these efforts are taking shape on the ground and helping to prepare Idaho’s transportation network for the future.
Idaho Transportation Leaders Convene: Charting a Course for the Future in Boise
Guest content by Local Highway Technical Assistance Council
Last month, over 550 transportation professionals, industry experts, and elected officials descended upon Boise, Idaho, for the highly anticipated 2025 Idaho Local Transportation Convention. Organized by the Idaho Association of Highway Districts (IAHD), the four-day event, held from November 10-13, served as a crucial annual forum for the state's local public sector employees, consulting firms and political leadership to reflect on the year's accomplishments, bolster technical expertise and forge invaluable professional connections.
The convention, a cornerstone tradition for Idaho's 285 Local Highway Jurisdictions, is more than just a series of meetings; it is a vital display of the grassroots strength and collaborative spirit that drives the state's infrastructure development.
Record-Breaking Generosity Fuels Future Scholars
A perennial highlight of the convention is the annual scholarship fundraiser, a testament to the community's commitment to supporting the families of dedicated transportation workers. This year’s event was a resounding success, raising over $36,000. These funds are specifically dedicated to scholarships for the children and grandchildren of Highway District employees and commissioners across Idaho, ensuring that the legacy of service is supported through educational opportunities.
Informative Sessions Drive Technical Excellence
Attendees immersed themselves in three days of intensive and diverse informational sessions. The curriculum spanned a broad array of critical subjects, with perennial staples like pavement preservation, winter maintenance strategies and various legal topics anchoring the agenda.
The Local Highway Technical Assistance Council (LHTAC), a key organization in Idaho's transportation landscape, played a significant role, hosting multiple in-depth sessions. In the 2025 program, LHTAC provided specialized training on essential practices such as Chip Sealing, the nuances of Understanding Bridge Inspection Reports, and the strategic value of Leveraging Emerging Technologies to enhance operations. LHTAC staff remained on site throughout the convention, offering critical one-on-one technical assistance and outreach regarding the transportation funding programs they oversee.
Focus Shifts to Innovative Financing for Infrastructure
A major theme of the 2025 convention was securing and funding the future of Idaho's transportation improvements. This focus was underscored by high-profile panels featuring both state and national experts.
The PNWER RIA’s Innovative Financing panel discussion drew significant attention, led by former Idaho State Senate President Pro Tempore Chuck Winder. The discussion featured a distinguished roster of panelists, including Idaho State Representative Dustin Manwaring; Will Resch, Acting Head of Project Development for the Build America Bureau; Daniel Nguyen, Director of Project Delivery from the Oklahoma DOT; and Sam Beydoun, Senior Advisor at the Build America Center.
Further emphasizing federal funding opportunities, the panel introduced attendees to various federal grant and credit programs available for local highway and bridge funding. A standout example highlighted was the Oklahoma DOT's $94 million RAAMP program. By strategically leveraging a $49 million federal credit program (TIFIA), Oklahoma was able to accelerate 60 miles of rural highway safety enhancements, bringing their completion date forward by a remarkable nine years—a powerful case study in the efficacy of innovative finance.
Networking and Industry Collaboration
Beyond the session halls, the convention fostered essential collaboration through sponsor booths manned by leading engineering firms, suppliers, equipment manufacturers and various Pacific Northwest agencies. This dynamic setting for knowledge sharing and networking is integral to the convention’s success.
The organizer, the Idaho Association of Highway Districts (IAHD), is a non-profit, non-partisan service organization dedicated to the improvement of highway districts across the state. The IAHD's mission is clear: to oversee legislation affecting highway districts, educate officials to continually improve management practices and assist members in obtaining technical and legal services.
The annual Idaho Local Transportation Convention, which rotates between Boise and Coeur d’Alene, concluded as a success, equipping the state's transportation leaders with the knowledge, connections and financial insights necessary to pave the way for a safer and more connected Idaho.
Over a Century of Public Transportation in the Treasure Valley
Guest content by Valley Regional Transit
Transportation is critical for people to live full lives. It was this reality that over 110 years ago spurred the development of extensive interurban rail service in the Treasure Valley. Although the interurban rail era was very short lived, some form of transit service has operated in the valley since its founding. With the current overwhelming dominance of private vehicles, why has public transportation persisted? Because a transportation network that is dependent solely on private vehicles creates excessive burdens on everyone.
Today, about 36% of people in Idaho can’t drive due to age or disability. Another 4% don’t have access to a personal car or truck. Even more struggle to afford the costs of transportation. Without alternatives, those who can drive are burdened with chauffeuring those who cannot. This affects everyone, children and their parents, cash-strapped young adults trying to get an education or begin employment or purchase a home, adults aging out of driving and their adult children, adults who can drive but are temporarily without a vehicle, etc.
The Treasure Valley’s dependence on private vehicles costs its residents more than $1.5 billion each year. That is what is spent on operating personal vehicles, not including vehicle costs. And it is on top of the taxes spent to build and maintain the necessary roadways. By comparison, the current operating budget for public transportation in the region is approximately $25 million, or less than 2% of the annual private costs spent on personal transportation. And with transit, there are no additional private costs. That is the power of public transportation. It reduces the financial and logistical burdens of the communities it serves.
Valley Regional Transit’s Modern Efforts
For more than 25 years, Valley Regional Transit has provided public transportation services within the Treasure Valley. It has been limited in its ability to expand service with growth because it has no taxing authority. An innovative partnership with the PNWER RIA is focused on exploring whether Transportation Infrastructure Finance and Innovation Act (TIFIA) financing or Railroad Rehabilitation and Improvement Financing (RRIF) could be used to help transit in the Treasure Valley meet today’s challenges.
A hundred years ago, transit was funded through development along the interurban railway. While the region will need to find a way to generate some dedicated public funding, VRT is intrigued by the possibility of being one of the transit systems in the country that is turning to public-private partnerships to generate a portion of its ongoing funding. TIFIA financing for a public parking garage and multi-modal center on the western edge of Downtown Boise could be a modern way of generating on-going operational revenue while simultaneously strengthening the transit travel market along a key bus rapid transit corridor. With support from PNWER RIA, Valley Regional Transit is engaging the local development community to understand parking demand and development pressures in West Downtown.
On the other side of the Valley, Valley Regional Transit is partnering with PNWER RIA to see whether TIFIA financing could be used to convert an existing surface park and ride and transit maintenance yard into a multi-use Transit Oriented Development. Like the project in Boise, the objective of this investment would be to build a revenue generating community asset that strengthens the transit travel market. This project, which is along the old interurban line, would build on existing momentum for multi-family units along Nampa Caldwell Boulevard. With transit serving these developments, the boulevard could transition into a multi-modal corridor which would provide more transportation options for Canyon County residents.
In addition to these two site specific projects, PNWER RIA is also supporting Valley Regional Transit in reviewing what could be done to convert the existing Boise Cut-Off rail corridor into a high-performance corridor that moves more freight and restores passenger service. This project will review existing freight operations and constraints and identify projects that could expand or improve freight rail in coordination with the restoration of passenger service in the Treasure Valley.
By preparing the Treasure Valley for potential TIFIA and RRIF projects, VRT will be positioned to reduce the burdens of transportation. The resulting multimodal network that generates revenue from the developments it serves not only increases the number of people who can participate in the community, it also lowers the costs of transportation to the public and creates a more sustainable funding model.
Advancing Transportation in the Gem State and Beyond
Moving transportation infrastructure forward requires an all-hands approach by project sponsors, policymakers, private industry and communities. The PNWER RIA works to strengthen these relationships in Idaho and across the Pacific Northwest, and part of this effort is our annual visits to the capital cities of Idaho, Washington, Oregon, Alaska and Montana. We’ll be in Boise in late January for our Idaho at the Crossroads legislative visit, learning about legislative priorities, deepening cross-industry connections and elevating innovative tools for our region’s challenging transportation projects.
As we wrap up 2025, we’re reflecting on the partnerships that make this work possible. Advancing region-wide projects calls for meaningful collaboration across agencies, jurisdictions and sectors. This year, our events in Bellevue, Portland, Bellingham and Boise underscored the value of coming together to exchange ideas in common cause. We appreciate the support of our partners, and we’re excited to keep this momentum going. With strong relationships in place, we’ll continue to educate decisionmakers and support projects that ensure our region remains resilient and connected.
