page_title: Interstate 86 (Idaho)
section_title: Route description
hierarchical_section_title: Interstate 86 (Idaho) / Route description
caption_attribution_description: English: Entrance to the Chubbuck city, Idaho
context_page_description: Interstate 86 is an east–west intrastate Interstate Highway located entirely within the state of Idaho. It runs approximately 63 miles from an intersection with I-84 east of Declo in rural Cassia County, to an intersection with I-15 in Chubbuck, just north of Pocatello. The highway is part of the main route from Boise and Twin Falls to Idaho Falls and the upper Snake River region.
  I-86 runs through a sparsely populated region along the south side of the Snake River and is mostly concurrent with U.S. Route 30, which it replaced in the 1970s. It passes through American Falls at its midpoint and has a business route that serves the city center. The highway also serves the Minidoka National Wildlife Refuge, Massacre Rocks State Park, the Fort Hall Indian Reservation, and the Pocatello Regional Airport.
  The highway follows a section of the historic Oregon Trail, which was paved and incorporated into US 30N in 1926. Under the original numbering proposal for the Interstate Highway System released in 1957, the highway was supposed to be part of Interstate 82N, but it was instead designated as Interstate 15W. The first section of the freeway, near American Falls, was completed in 1959.
context_section_description: I-86 begins at an interchange with I-84 and U.S. Route 30 (US 30) northeast of Declo. From the interchange, I-84 continues west towards Twin Falls and Boise and southeast towards Salt Lake City, Utah. I-86 travels east, concurrent with US 30, through rural Cassia County for about 14 miles (23 km) to its first exit at Raft River near a crossing of the river of the same name. From Raft River, I-86 follows the Snake River upstream through the Minidoka National Wildlife Refuge and crosses into Power County.
  The freeway continues northeast between the Snake River and the Sublett Range and passes a set of rest areas near Massacre Rocks State Park, one of the state's most popular tourist attractions. Near Neeley, I-86 passes a wind farm and intersects State Highway 37 (SH-37), which provides a southerly connection to Rockland. A business route of I-86 also terminates at the interchange and continues along the north side of the freeway as it approaches the city of American Falls. I-86 bypasses the city on its east side and intersects the business route and SH-39 near American Falls Airport. From the city, the highway runs along the south side of the American Falls Reservoir and follows a railroad into the Fort Hall Indian Reservation.
  I-86 passes through the northern section of the Fort Hall Reservation, serving exits to Arbon Valley and the Pocatello Regional Airport. US 30 leaves the freeway at an interchange located between the eastern boundary of the reservation and the Bannock County line on the Portneuf River. US 30 continues southeast into Pocatello while I-86 runs through the northern suburb of Chubbuck. The highway intersects US 91 in a diverging diamond interchange, the first to be built in Idaho, on the northeast side of the Pine Ridge Mall. I-86 continues east for approximately one mile (1.6 km) to a directional T interchange with I-15 at the north edge of Pocatello, where it terminates.
  At 63 miles (101 km) in length, I-86 is one of the shortest primary Interstate Highways in the contiguous United States. The highway is maintained by the Idaho Transportation Department (ITD), which conducts an annual survey of traffic on certain highway segments that is expressed in terms of average annual daily traffic (AADT), a measure of traffic volume for any average day of the year. The busiest section of I-86 is near its eastern terminus in Chubbuck, carrying an average of 27,158 vehicles. The least-traveled section, near Massacre Rocks, sees only 6,759 vehicles on an average day.
caption: The penultimate interchange on I-86, at US-91 in Chubbuck
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