Idaho Gov. Otter has plan to thin traffic. Wants more state employees to work from home

August 1, 2007

It's 6:45 a.m. and Gov. Butch Otter is anxious to leave for work. He's already let the dogs out, poured his cup of black coffee and taken out the trash in his tailored dark gray suit. He strides briskly to his Ford Expedition waiting in the long curved driveway, the radio tuned to 580 AM and already blaring the road report.

Every day, Otter commutes to the Capitol Mall from his ranch in Star. If he leaves after 6:30, the 18-mile trip can take 50 minutes. That's a lot of time to think, and Otter often ruminates on what he sees on the road.

Otter, 65, has seen a lot of changes to the scenery in the 14 years he's had the ranch. New developments and businesses have sprung up everywhere, adding more cars to stretches of road that used to be remote and empty.

"The problem is, people are just like me," Otter said. "I'm sitting in the car looking and seeing all these people driving with only one person in the car."

By Shawna Gamache - sgamache@idahostatesman.com

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