NDOT projects at Lake Tahoe this week; delays expected on Highway 50 at Cave Rock
Submitted by Jeff Munson on Tue, 09/08/2015 - 8:14am
Beginning Wednesday drivers will see temporary lane reductions on Highway 50 through Cave Rock, Lake Tahoe, according to the Nevada Department of Transportation. Also, work begins Tuesday on a pedestrian safety project on State Route 28 in Incline Village.
For the Cave Rock project, both directions of traffic will be alternated through the eastbound Cave Rock tunnel, with travel delays of up to 30 minutes each weekday between approximately 7 a.m. and 4:30 p.m. The daytime closures are anticipated to last four or five weeks.
The closures are for testing and preparatory work for an upcoming NDOT project. The project, currently scheduled to begin next spring, will extend the westbound, lakeside Cave Rock tunnel entrance, providing an extended overhang for further driver safety and protection against potential rockfall.
Stabilization experts removed rock debris above the tunnel and surveyed current rock face condition for safety and stability.
“Making sure that drivers get safely where they need to go is our top priority,” NDOT District Engineer Thor Dyson explained. “This upcoming project is just one of many ways we are enhancing travel and preserving safety through Cave Rock.”
Meanwhile, NDOT work at Lake Tahoe continues with a project that begins Tuesday to construct pedestrian and safety enhancements on State Route 28 in Incline Village.
The project will relocate a crosswalk on State Route 28 west of Village Boulevard closer to existing bus stop and pedestrian crossing points. The crosswalk east of Village Boulevard will remain in place to serve an existing bus stop. Both crosswalks will be enhanced with pedestrian crossing warning signs equipped with rapid flashing beacons activated when pedestrians push the crossing button.
Street lighting and sidewalk ramps will be added, along with enhanced pedestrian crossing signs in advance of the crosswalks. Left turn lanes from Country Club Drive to State Route 28 will also be installed with new traffic detection systems to help drivers most efficiently and safely get through the intersection. Construction is projected to complete by the end of fall. Drivers should expect minor, intermittent travel delays during construction.
The nearly $300,000 project by contractor Sierra Nevada Construction will be funded as part of approximately $10 million in state highway funds NDOT will dedicate to pedestrian enhancements in the Las Vegas, Reno and Tahoe areas over the next year.
The funding is one component of an ongoing program to build stand-alone pedestrian safety improvements, as well as incorporate safety improvements into road repaving and other projects. Additionally, NDOT dedicates approximately $21 million annually in federal highway safety funds to roadway safety projects and programs.
Preliminary data shows that 32 pedestrian deaths have occurred on Nevada roads thus far in 2015, compared to 38 deaths in the same timeframe last year.
“Every death and serious injury on Nevada roads is a tragedy, and nothing is more important to us than the safety of our transportation system,” Nevada Department of Transportation Director Rudy Malfabon explained. “These projects are an extension of the planning and projects which NDOT and our partners put in place each year to enhance safety and save lives.”
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