Star neighbors turned out Tuesday night to weigh in on a major road project that could reshape one of the area's busiest corridors for years to come.The Ada County Highway District held an open house at LifeSpring Christian Chur ch in Star to present conceptual design plans for a proposed widening of Star Road between State Street and Chinden Boulevard. The project would expand the corridor to five lanes while also adding multi-use pathways on both sides of the road, a new pedestrian crossing beacon between Main Street and Hercules Drive, infrastructure for a future traffic signal at Star and Joplin roads, replacement of the Boise River Bridge, and replacement of several canal bridges along the route.Star Mayor Trevor Chadwick said the city has been pushing for this project for years.Watch: Mayor Chadwick, Star Neighbors weigh in on Proposed Star Rd. widening project ACHD proposes widening Star Road to five lanes"We've been asking for this project for a lot of years because, uh, all the growth. It's our only north-south route across the Boise River, and there's a lot of traffic that comes out of Canyon County that utilizes that route, and it backs up tremendously," Chadwick said.Chadwick said ACHD originally was not going to address the corridor until 2035, but the city worked with the district to advance the timeline because of need.Star Road serves as the only north-south crossing of the Boise River for roughly 7 miles in either direction with the next nearest crossings approximately 7 miles west to Middleton and several miles east."When you have all this growth that's in several communities on the north side of the river, it makes Star Road a choke point. And so it does need to get widened," Chadwick said.ACHD project manager Dave Rader said traffic projections make the urgency clear."Our traffic analysis showed that by 2050, traffic on Star Road is supposed to grow by 350%. So, this is a needed project and why it's become a priority," Rader said.Rader said multi-use pathways planned for both sides of the corridor will make the area more accessible for pedestrians and cyclists."Walking and biking will get a lot easier along Star Road when this project's built," Rader said.The project is currently in the concept phase, with two design alternatives under review. One option includes a continuous two-way left turn lane from Chinden Boulevard to State Street. The other features more median islands, which Rader said help with speed mitigation and reduce conflict points from left-turning vehicles through the corridor.Chadwick said the timing of the Star Road project was carefully coordinated around other major construction already underway in the area. The Highway 44 widening through town is set to begin this fall and wrap up next year. Highway 16 and the Highway 16 and 44 interchange are also expected to be complete next year. That would give the community roughly a year before Star Road construction begins."It's good timing on getting this all done," Chadwick said.The project is divided into two phases. Phase one, between Main Street and State Street, is scheduled for ACHD's fiscal year 2029, which begins in fall 2028. Phase two, between Main Street and Chinden Boulevard, is scheduled for 2030 to 2031.Chadwick said he understands the frustration neighbors feel about ongoing construction but said the work is unavoidable."It's going to be painful, you know, and there's no doubt about it, but it's necessary for us to be able to move around in our own community," Chadwick said.Chadwick, who has lived in Star since 1993, said he has been working to get this project moving since 2016 and urged neighbors to stay engaged with the process."Always stay involved with ACHD on projects like this and make sure that you put your input in. They do listen to that," Chadwick said.Star neighbor Arthur Soukup, who has lived in the area for about eight years, said he supports the project overall but opposes the median island design option, comparing raised medians to a medical condition that restricts flow."A raised median is kind of like arteriosclerosis of a red blood cell. It plugs the vein," Soukup said.Soukup said raised medians force drivers to travel much farther than necessary to reach destinations on the opposite side of the road."If I'm going down the road in one direction and I wanna go to a parts store, I have to go all the way down, turn around to get to the parts store, and if I miss it, I have to go all the way to the other end, turn around. You can't cross-connect," Soukup said.He added on with a better solution."You need to have that center lane for lane turning either left or right," Soukup said."They shouldn't have any raised medians at all. Remove everything," Soukup said."I've seen places where they put these raised medians, and after it's put in and it's all done, the people say, oh my God, how do we mess everything up?" Soukup said.Despite his concerns about that specific design element, Soukup said the project is necessary given the growth the Treasure Valley is experiencing."You're gonna need every lane available to reduce the congestion," Soukup said."The only thing it does, you have to get the traffic wider and faster. If you can't accomplish that, don't do anything at all," Soukup said.Community members can still submit comments on the two design alternatives through ACHD's online survey. The district expects to select a preferred design later this year. Phase one of construction is expected to begin in 2029. ...read more read less