US-191 Gallatin Canyon Safety & Capacity Study
Facilitating engineering consensus on slow-vehicle turnouts, rockfall mitigation, and wildlife collision reduction through the narrow Gallatin River corridor.
- Client
- Gallatin & Madison County Joint Transportation Committee
- Corridors
- US-191 MP 45 – MP 80
- Period
- 2022 – 2024
- Role
- Study facilitation, traffic data synthesis, community briefings
- Partners
- Western Transportation Institute
Operating Constraints & Field Realities
US-191 carries intense commuter and recreation traffic between Bozeman, Big Sky, and West Yellowstone through a steep, confined canyon with riverbanks on one side and cliff faces on the other.
Tailgating behind slow commercial delivery vehicles led to dangerous passing maneuvers on narrow two-lane segments, generating severe head-on crash risks.
Engineered Countermeasures & Delivery
The association organized stakeholder workshops between geotechnical contractors, county planners, and state transport engineers to identify constructible turnout locations.
Our working group delivered an actionable engineering report specifying six slow-vehicle pullouts, radar-activated animal warning signs, and rockfall barrier priorities without encroaching on the river corridor.
Corridor Performance Benchmarks
Field Photography & Progress
More Case Studies
Have a corridor challenge to address?
Learn how the association convenes technical working groups to evaluate complex highway safety and capacity questions.
2038 Stadium Dr, Bozeman, MT 59715