NDOT reopens Kingsbury Grade
UPDATE SUNDAY: Kingsbury Grade State Route 207 again closed due to sink hole.
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Nevada Department of Transportation has announced that State Route 207/Kingsbury Grade, the main connection between South Lake Tahoe and the Carson Valley is back open after temporary repairs were made to stabilize the sink hole.
"We actually put in an interim repair and in the spring or early summer we'll come back and completely reinstall the eroding drainage pipe that caused the sinkhole," said Meg Ragonese, NDOT Public Information Officer.
She told South Tahoe Now to remind motorists that even though the road is open tonight, chains or snow tires are required.
Kingsbury Grade has been closed since January 3 when the sinkhole was creating hazardous driving conditions for the 5,600 cars that pass over it daily. The Lake Tahoe side of SR207 was able to stay open to the summit, but the valley side was closed.
Over the past few weeks, a sinkhole formed where a drainage pipe crosses underneath the road at mile marker 4.3, approximately 10 miles up the road on the Carson Valley side. Q&D Construction, Inc. and Granite Construction made the roadway repairs.
“We want drivers to be able to get safely where they need to go,” NDOT District Engineer Thor Dyson explained. “We have reinforced the roadbed by filling in the eroded drainage area and repaving the roadway surface as an interim repair so that travelers can safely drive Kingsbury Grade this winter. As weather warms and dries out in coming months, we will install a permanent new drainage pipe.”
Kingsbury Grade will be closed in future months as final repairs are made. As weather will play a factor, no timeframe for the future repair-related closure is set, but the closure is anticipated to take place in the spring or early summer. NDOT will announce the road closure and repairs through the media, on nevadadot.com and nvroads.com websites, as well as the 511 Nevada Travel Info phone number.
Go to South Tahoe Now for updates to this and other stories.