District: District 3 - Marysville
Contact: Steve Nelson (Caltrans District 3), Carla Hass (El Dorado County)
Phone: (530) 632-0080, (916) 293-2046
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Camino – Caltrans District 3 and the El Dorado County Department of Transportation are alerting the public to significant traffic changes on the U.S. Highway 50 Camino Safety Project.
Effective today, the intersection at Camino Heights Drive is permanently closed to left-hand turn movements onto or off of Highway 50 so that the contractor, Security Paving, Inc., can finish construction on the concrete median barrier. The roundabout connecting to the new Pondorado Undercrossing is scheduled to open Monday, September 26.
The closure of left turns at Camino Heights Drive will require motorists to travel east on Highway 50 to the Cedar Grove (Exit 54) off-ramp and turn left on Carson Road to access the westbound Highway 50 on-ramp until the undercrossing opens to traffic on Monday. Westbound motorists will need to continue on to the Point View Drive (Exit 49A) off-ramp and then travel eastbound on Highway 50 to access Camino Heights Drive.
This $55.4 million safety project consists of constructing a continuous 56-inch-high median barrier on a three-mile section of Highway 50 that restricts left turns at all at-grade intersections, building the roundabout and undercrossing to provide a safe way for traffic to cross the highway, improving drainage, replacing two El Dorado Irrigation water lines, building a wildlife undercrossing, repaving the highway and installing new signage and striping.
Caltrans, the County Department of Transportation, El Dorado Irrigation District and the El Dorado County Transportation Commission have collaborated on this safety project, with El Dorado County providing $7.3 million in funding for local road improvements.
Repairs on the median barrier continue, as does profile grinding on the highway to meet smoothness specifications. The bridge deck is scheduled for final paving next week with smoothness corrections required over the next several weeks. Motorists can expect day and nighttime lane closures on the bridge until mid-October to complete the work.
Permanent striping, sign installation and erosion control work also remain to be completed on the project over the next several weeks. All work on the project will be completed by the end of the year.
The construction schedule is subject to change based on weather, the availability of crews and equipment or other unexpected events.
The project includes $3.4 million in funding from Senate Bill 1, the Road Repair and Accountability Act of 2017. SB 1 provides $5 billion in transportation funding annually split between the state and local agencies. Road projects progress through construction phases more quickly based on the availability of SB 1 funds, including projects that are partially funded by SB 1. For more information about other projects funded by SB 1, visit Rebuilding California.
Caltrans District 3 is responsible for 4,385 highway lane miles in 11 Sacramento Valley and Northern Sierra counties. The El Dorado County Department of Transportation is responsible for 1,083 centerline miles of roadway and 76 bridges.
For project updates, follow Caltrans District 3 on Twitter @CaltransDist3 and on Facebook at CaltransDistrict3. For real-time traffic, click on Caltrans' Quickmap or download the QuickMap app from the App Store or Google Play.