Soon motorists, cyclists and pedestrians along the 4 ½ miles stretch of Highway 49 from I-80 to Dry Creek Road will have a much better traveling experience. Caltrans, along with PCTPA, County of Placer and City of Auburn, unveiled plans on Tuesday to a large turnout of community members for rehabilitating the road surface, adding continuous bike lanes and sidewalks in certain locations.
Highway 49 is an important roadway that runs through the Placer County region. It is both a highway and a destination for residents, businesses and visitors, providing multiple access points for shopping, personal and financial services, visiting historic sites and landmarks associated with the California Gold Rush, and a wide range of choices for recreation and entertainment.
“We are pleased to work with Caltrans to make this project a reality and provide additional benefits to motorists, cyclists and pedestrians,” explained Placer County Supervisor Jim Holmes. “We expect these improvements will ease congestion and improve traffic conditions along Highway 49.”
Currently in the planning phase through the end of 2018, the entire project is expected to be complete by the end of 2020.
“Our original goal was to provide a complete highway project. Unfortunately, voters did not pass Measure M, so we need to work on the Highway 49 Rehabilitation project incrementally,” stated PCTPA Executive Director Celia McAdam.
Proposed project improvements include:
- Repaving and restriping the roadway to accommodate bicyclists
- Adding continuous bike lanes on the side of the road (Class II) and additional sidewalks in some areas
- Installing signals at Locksley Lane and Shale Ridge Road.
Improved bike access on Highway 49 extends the continuous miles available to cyclists in Placer County.
“Bicyclists and pedestrians have needed improved access to the busy corridor for some time. We are excited to launch the Highway 49 Rehabilitation Project and provide these audiences additional options.” said Rod Murphey, Project Manager for Caltrans District 3.
Stay tuned to read a full summary of the workshop, view the presentations and hear the perspectives of community members who participated in this event. Sign up for e-mail updates at http://bit.ly/PCTPA.
To learn more about the Highway 49 Rehabilitation Project visit http://www.dot.ca.gov/d3/projects/subprojects/2F340/index.html
