Tribal Trail inches closer to a decision. Take this time to learn more and send your comments to the Teton County Commission
The Board of County Commission workshop scheduled for October 3rd has been tentatively rescheduled until November. At this meeting, county staff will present a summary of the Tribal Trail Connector (TTC) project and conclusions from the final stakeholder meeting. As we pointed out in our previous blog post, there was no clear consensus at the end of that meeting. Stakeholders were split between the build and no-build option. Community members clearly lean towards the no-build option. Of the 389 people that wrote in during the county’s public comment period, 63% were opposed to building the Tribal Trail Connector.
The Alliance has consistently advocated for the no-build option and has urged the county to at least slow down the Tribal Trail project and include it in the upcoming Highway-22 corridor assessment. The county claims that assessment does not address the purpose and need for the connector, but some stated purposes are flawed, especially the goal to “address the region’s traffic congestion.” This Cambridge Systematics Study shows that adding an intersection from the Tribal Trail Connector will increase congestion on Highway-22 by 4-8% for most scenarios.
In the short term, Tribal Trail will cause more wildlife-vehicle collisions, block wildlife movement, and increase safety concerns. In the long term, we will be putting down more pavement instead of looking at traffic mitigation measures on Highway 22 that solve the larger issues. In addition, some of the preferred alternatives would lead to condemnation of wetlands under federal jurisdiction and permanently damage an irreplaceable natural resource.
To help stop the increasingly fast-moving spiral of more roads, wider roads, and more cars, it is important that the county fully looks at this project, its merits and drawbacks, and how it fits in with future transportation alternatives and the desires of the community.
While no public comment will be taken at the Board of County Commissioners workshop in November, we encourage you to watch the county’s presentation to learn more and write to your county commissioners before they vote on Tribal Trail. If you believe, like we do, that taxpayer funds should be spent more wisely, and that the TTC will not solve our current congestion problems, add your thoughts to the tide of community opposition to this project.