WTI is assisting the Bureau of Land Management (BLM) in furthering the design of an organized transportation system in Owyhee County. Through a previous partnership with the BLM, WTI organized a full inventory of routes within two of the five designated sub-regions in Owyhee County (Canyonland West and Canyonland East) into a designed transportation system identifying the hierarchical importance of each route and how it is related to the segments around it.

The objective of this follow-up project is to continue designing an organized routes numbering system that facilitates the development of feasible alternatives for the public to access Owyhee County. WTI will build on previous work under the initial partnership to ready the plan for public review and the subsequent Transportation and Travel Management Plan (TTMP).  This project is the first step in the process and will aid the BLM in making decisions about how a route is used and its importance to the system as a whole.  This numbering system will allow the Interdisciplinary Team make decisions on an entire route instead of a single segment on a map which drastically reduces workload.  The designations will be a balance between public use and resource protection.

The public benefit will be an organized system of routes that will protect natural and cultural resources. The final organized routes inventory with all routes numbered and connected will provide clarity to the public during the BLM Transportation and Travel Management Planning.  This organization of routes will help remove redundant routes that crisscross the landscape and help prevent conflicts with natural and cultural resources.  This route numbering system may also be used “on the ground” so end users will understand what sub-region of Owyhee County they are in and whether or not they are on a main route based off of the route number.