The 21st Street underpass in downtown Billings is too low for fire trucks and too risky for many ambulances and other large vehicles, and city leaders are now weighing four options to address the problem, ranging from free to $30 million.
The underpass has been struck by vehicles at least 26 times in recent years.
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The eight-foot clearance prevents the fire department's entire fleet from passing through, forcing emergency crews to reroute when a train blocks the tracks at 27th Street.
Assistant Fire Chief Kevin Bentz said the detour adds meaningful time to emergency responses.
"It can take about four minutes to make a trip from 27th and Montana under the 13th Street underpass," Bentz said.
The restriction affects trucks at fire stations one and two. Other units use 6th Street or 13th Street coming out of the Heights.
"As a general rule, we don't have a policy to allow anybody to go under the current 21st Street underpass," Bentz said.
On Wednesday, the Policy Coordinating Committee approved a plan outlining four options:
- Spend nothing and do nothing
- Spend up to $800,000 for minor improvements with an overheight warning system
- Spend $10 million to increase clearance to 11.5 feet
- Spend $30 million to increase clearance to 13.5 feet
Yellowstone County Commissioner Mark Morse, a member of the committee, said the $30 million option may be out of reach.
"Thirty million dollars to get to the 13 feet for a fire truck is probably, you know, that's probably too rich for what we can afford," Morse said.
Morse said the $10 million alternative is a reasonable middle ground.
"If you can spend in the neighborhood of $10 million and do 11 feet and at least get police vehicles and ambulance to transit it, that's a reasonable compromise," Morse said.
Mayor Mike Nelson, also a committee member, said the case for action is clear.
"Of those alternatives besides the do nothing alternative, I do believe we should be doing things to improve that underpass," Nelson said.
Approving the four options positions the city to pursue federal funding if it becomes available.
All four options still require City Council approval.
"It really sets us up well in case there's the perfect grant opportunity that comes along a lot of times, with these grant opportunities," committee member Elyse Monat said.
Nelson acknowledged the timeline is uncertain.
"Those kind of things take a long time," Nelson said. "And so, this thing could sit on the list of priorities for a long time before we can actually get to it."
Any improvement is not expected to come for at least the next five years.
In the meantime, emergency crews will continue working around the underpass.
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