Here's a link to my full story on today's brouhaha over Idaho's priorities for federal stimulus money. The Dover Bridge on U.S. Highway 2 in North Idaho has width and height restrictions and a lowered speed limit because of its condition, and Popular Mechanics dubbed it one of the "10 pieces of U.S. infrastructure we must fix now," along with the Brooklyn Bridge, O'Hare International Airport in Chicago and the Sacramento River levies. But the ITD board knocked the project off the top of a list of priorities for spending federal stimulus funds, deciding instead to spread the anticipated money to other projects around the state. That was partly because North Idaho already is getting lots of transportation funds as the long-planned Sandpoint Bypass construction is starting. The board did designate the Dover Bridge as the next project to be funded if more money arrives than expected; that's more than they did for the reconstruction of the Vista Interchange on I-84, which was crossed off the list because the Boise area has other bond-funded projects under construction on the freeway.

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