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Members of the Missoula Area Chamber of Commerce don't like the idea of extending the “Broadway diet” east from Orange Street to Madison Street.

Some 78 percent of 222 respondents in a chamber survey released Wednesday oppose three lanes. In written comments, one member said the road needs four or five lanes at the minimum.

The survey results were made public just days before the Missoula City Council's public hearing Monday on the West Broadway Corridor Community Vision Plan. The chamber wants council members to consider those results.

At 7 p.m. Monday in Missoula City Council Chambers, the council will take comments on the plan, which covers “land use, economic development, vehicular movement and access, and increased pedestrian and bicycle safety for the West Broadway gateway corridor,” a Wednesday news release from the Office of Planning and Grants states.

The plan stems from brainstorming sessions that showed displeasure with West Broadway reconstruction. Critics say navigating the new corridor is difficult and the changes have led to more crashes. However, some bicyclists and pedestrians have praised the new stretch of road for being safer and point out that cars and trucks haven't killed any walkers there since the redo.

The plan is broad in scope and intends to focus people's attention on a future for the area as a whole and not solely on the road or number of lanes, which dropped from four to three. According to the news release, members of the public also may comment on a plan alternative, “which eliminates all references to three lanes on Broadway east of Orange Street.”

Both versions of the plan are available for public review at www.co.missoula.mt.us/transportation/WestBroadway.htm or at the Missoula Office of Planning and Grants in City Hall, 435 Ryman St.

The chamber results showed that some 46 percent of survey participants want the council to delay considering the plan and take it up after the Greater Downtown Master Plan is complete. Other responses are mixed about how to move forward.

While the chamber is distributing results from the five survey questions, it is not yet taking an official position on the plan.

“We're not making any requests right now. It's just an informational piece,” said Chad Bauer, chamber board chairman.

Roughly half of the participants said the new road has had no impact on their business, and nearly half said the change had a negative effect. A majority, 96 percent, do not have businesses located along the corridor from Orange Street to Russell Street, according to the survey. Four percent do.

Reporter Keila Szpaller can be reached at 523-5262 or at keila.szpaller@missoulian.com.

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