Carson City and Lake Tahoe road report: Lane closures as night work begins on freeway

Here is the Carson City area road report for the week of July 20-26, 2015. Beginning Sunday, July 19, through Friday, July 24, there will be nightly lane closures on Carson Street between Old Clear Creek Road and Snyder Avenue from 9 p.m. to 6 a.m., as part of the Nevada Department of Transportation’s continued work on the construction of the Carson City Freeway.

During this time, there will also be closures on eastbound Highway 50 (Spooner Junction) approaching Carson Street. In addition, installation of fencing along the freeway corridor from Fairview Drive down to the Carson Street/US 50 W intersection will continue.

Clear Creek Avenue will continue to be closed to through traffic Monday through Thursday between Lynette Lane and Center Drive due to utility work. Detours will be signed and the JAC bus stop on Clear Creek Avenue will be temporarily relocated near the intersection of Frontage Road and Clear Creek Avenue.

Utility work will continue Monday through Thursday with closures along Eighth Street between Curry Street and Minnesota Street from 7 a.m. to 5:30 p.m. each day. There will be flagger controlled traffic.

The Nevada Department of Transportation will continue construction of drainage improvements on U.S. Highway 50 West between the two truck ramps (just west of U.S. 395 to Sierra Highlands Drive). There will be lane closures Monday through Friday, but the roadway will remain open to traffic in both directions.

On Friday, July 24, Third Street will be closed between Carson Street and Curry Street from 2 p.m. to midnight for a special event.

Elsewhere, work continues on a $1.2 million road project to reduce erosion, preserve water quality and enhance storm drains along Highway 50 in south Carson City and west along Spooner Grade. Plans include replacing more than 50 storm drains and drop inlets, as well as enhance roadside slopes and curb and gutter on Highway 50 from the South Carson Street at Spooner junction to Tahoe Golf Club Drive, around 4.5 miles west along Highway 50.

As the project progresses, single lane closures with minimal travel delays are to be expected on Highway 50. Motorists are asked to obey traffic controls and drive at posted construction speed limits, or slower as necessary for conditions. The project will complete this fall.

At Lake Tahoe's north shore, NDOT has reduced State Route 28 eastbound traffic entering the Incline Village Gateway Roundabout from two to one lane in an effort to further enhance traffic safety.

As of July 14, temporary pavement markings have been placed to reduce the eastbound highway to one lane to help further lower speeds and smooth traffic into the roundabout. The traffic configuration will be evaluated and, if effective, could be delineated with permanent roadway striping in the future.

“Traffic roundabouts such as this can be instrumental in reducing severe crashes and helping keep traffic flowing through an intersection,” NDOT District Engineer Thor Dyson explained. “But, we continue to see signs of speeding or unsafe merging into the roundabout. Traffic safety and mobility are our top priorities. For safety, the reduced lanes will be tested as a way to slow speeds and help keep drivers in the roundabout safe and mobile.”

NDOT, in partnership with the Tahoe Transportation District, constructed the $2.4 million Incline Village Gateway roundabout in 2012 to enhance traffic safety and mobility, as well as minimize emissions and noise pollution resulting from idling vehicles.

Elsewhere at Lake Tahoe, work continues on Placer County’s $50 million Kings Beach Commercial Core Improvement Project from State Route 267 to Chipmunk Street. The project is installing curb and gutter, sidewalks, roundabouts, lighting and drainage systems to enhance pedestrian and bicycle mobility, improve safety and provide water-quality improvements. Completion is expected this fall.

State Route 89 (Placer County): Work continues on a $70.1 million project from Tahoma to the "Y" junction with State Route 28 in Tahoe City on Lake Tahoe’s West Shore that will upgrade storm water drainage and treatment systems, add curb and gutter, resurface and realign the road, add new left-turn pockets and widen shoulders on a 9-mile stretch of the highway. Completion is expected in fall 2016.

State Route 89 (El Dorado County): Work continues on a $20 million water-quality project from 0.1 mile north of the Eagle Falls Sidehill Viaduct No. 5 in Emerald Bay to the Meeks Creek Bridge in Meeks Bay. This project is adding new drainage features, curb and gutter in some locations, and resurfacing a nearly 7-mile stretch of the highway. Completion is expected this fall.

State Route 89 (El Dorado County): Work continues on an $8 million project from Meeks Creek to Wilson Avenue in Tahoma, installing curb and gutter and drainage systems to collect and treat stormwater. The highway will also be resurfaced.

State Route 89 (El Dorado County): Work continues on a $25 million project from the "Y" junction with U.S. Highway 50 in South Lake Tahoe to Cascade Road, north of Camp Richardson. Curb, gutter and sidewalks will be added in the 1.1-mile four-lane section, and the highway will be widened in the two-lane section to Visitor Center Road to provide 4-foot paved shoulders on each side. Drainage systems are also being built and the roadway will be resurfaced. Completion is expected by spring 2017.