Post Falls council pauses transportation plan over future growth concerns

The Post Falls City Council paused adoption of the city’s transportation plan after members worried it did not go far enough in planning for the way a much larger city will move. The hold means decisions on commutes, congestion, road timing and where new neighborhoods can grow will wait while councilors and staff revisit the document.

The biggest concern centered on the city’s street network, especially the lack of a major north-south thoroughfare. Councilor Samantha Steigleder raised that issue as the council weighed the 2025 Transportation Master Plan, noting that Post Falls has already grown to just under 50,000 residents and could approach 100,000 in the years ahead if current trends continue. City Engineer Rob Palus and other staff joined the discussion as the council chose to slow the process rather than push the plan through.

The master plan updates the city’s 2017 transportation plan and uses existing conditions from 2023 along with growth models through 2045. It lays out short-, medium- and long-term capital improvement and implementation programs, along with updated roadway standards and typical sections for local streets. It also covers facilities inside city limits and in Post Falls’ Shared Tier area, the planning boundary shared with Hayden and Rathdrum that extends beyond the current Area of City Impact.

The stakes are not small. Post Falls has about 500 miles of roads, 20 traffic signals and 14 roundabouts. In 2024, the city estimated the transportation plan could require about $100 million in impact fees over two decades to help pay for needed improvements. City projections released in November 2024 put the service-area population at 45,420 in 2024, 53,406 in 2025 and about 71,635 by 2035.

Public input has already shown where pressure is building. At an Aug. 28, 2025 open house, residents flagged Hayden Avenue, Cecil Road and Highway 41 as problem areas, part of a broader conversation about traffic-calming tools and future projects. Palus said public comments could lead staff to add or remove projects as the model changes, and he said the concerns would be carried to an advisory group of highway agencies because Post Falls growth affects nearby jurisdictions.

The timing matters because the Idaho Transportation Department began a four-year project in August 2025 to widen Interstate 90 between State Highway 41 in Post Falls and U.S. Highway 95 in Coeur d’Alene, with completion expected in 2029. ITD calls the five miles between SH-41 and US-95 the most heavily traveled and congested part of the corridor, underscoring how closely Post Falls’ local road decisions are tied to regional capacity. The council’s pause leaves the plan in play, but it also signals that the city wants its next move to match where Post Falls is headed, not just where it is now.