Latest news with #Caltrans
CBS News
10 hours ago
- Automotive
- CBS News
Interstate 80 express toll lanes could officially launch in Solano County before year's end
On at least one stretch of Interstate 80, Sacramento area drivers are seeing fewer orange cones. It's good news for those used to construction-related traffic delays up and down the corridor. A Caltrans project in its final stages is set to launch new FasTrak express lanes on I-80 in both directions from Vacaville's 505 interchange to Fairfield, as soon as December. In late June, Caltrans wrapped up construction of a brand new express lane in Vacaville that stretches down to Fairfield, where an existing HOV lane was converted to an express lane. The project took about a year and a half to complete. "It's more than just people driving from Vacaville or Fairfield, it's the whole region," said Vince Jacala, a spokesperson for Caltrans District 4, which encompasses Solano County. Drivers may have noticed within the past three weeks, the new lanes through Solano County are already open. In late June, Caltrans went ahead and opened the lanes to drivers to be used as temporary carpool or HOV lanes, allowing drivers a free sample of the soon-to-be I-80 express. The toll, once it launches, will be optional for drivers who want to pay the price for a quicker commute. "This project is a big deal. It's the first time Caltrans has widened Interstate 80 through this stretch of Solano County in 50 years," said Jacala. The temporary carpool lanes are already helping address the bumper-to-bumper backups that the project set out to fix. "It's really helped with traffic and helped relieve things for now," said Jacala. "When there's a lot of congestion and stop-and-go traffic, it creates a safety issue." Since Caltrans has finished construction of the lanes, the project is now in the hands of the Metropolitan Transportation Commission (MTC) to finish the final steps. MTC tells CBS Sacramento that right now, the agency is collecting data to test the toll system and make sure it is working properly. They also have to finish installing the electronic signage and capture systems needed. Caltrans said the projected completion date is set for December, but it could be pushed to Spring 2026 depending on the weather. So, how much is it going to cost drivers? MTC said it depends on the trip's time and distance. "For reference, the most recent data for average toll assessed on the I-680 express lanes in Contra Costa County was about $4.00 and over 60% of paid trips cost drivers less than $3.00," an MTC spokesperson told CBS Sacramento in a statement. Still, this is not just about Solano County traffic. Caltrans is eyeing regionwide upgrades. Plans are already in the works for an express lane from Davis to Downtown Sacramento, as CBS13 has previously reported. Jacala then described "the gap" from Dixon to Davis that they would want to fill in. "We want to extend express lanes all the way into downtown Sacramento," said Jacala. Meaning, the future of freeway traffic could look like an express lane drivers can take all the way from downtown Sacramento to the Bay Area and everywhere in between. Drivers interested in using the express lane once it launches need a FasTrak account linked to their license plate. To use the lanes as a carpool, drivers need to purchase a FasTrak flex toll tag for the vehicle that they can then set to the number of people currently in the car. Carpools with three or more people can use the express lane toll-free with a FasTrak flex tag. Two-person carpools will pay half-price tolls. For more information on the project, visit the Caltrans website.
San Francisco Chronicle
3 days ago
- Business
- San Francisco Chronicle
‘Just plain horrible': Prolonged Caltrans construction in California resort town has locals fuming
Last winter, Jennifer Gilbert drove into Guerneville, but the bohemian town she'd loved since childhood seemed to be gone. Barricades choked block after block of Main Street. Construction vehicles and equipment were strewn about. Instead of stopping, she kept driving. 'I thought, 'Oh no what happened?'' the Woodside resident said. Fast-forward to June, and Caltrans construction barricades still lined Main Street, with seemingly no place for pedestrians to walk. Rivertime Restaurant and Bar owner Leslie 'Jo' Crane said she routinely found orange-and-white striped barricades blocking the door of her business without warning, but she couldn't afford to close so she would push them aside. 'It was ridiculous — people didn't realize we were open,' Crane said. The $6.6 million project to redo four blocks of sidewalks, launched last September, was supposed to wrap up before the crucial summer season when businesses earn most of their income. But the project has dragged into July. Though most sidewalks have reopened in the past several weeks, allowing tourists to park and walk freely again, construction isn't fully done. A Caltrans spokesperson said the project is expected to be complete sometime this fall. 'It's been a mess,' said Nick Schwanz, Russian River Chamber of Commerce president and owner of Solar Punk Farms, a queer-run regenerative farm and event space. 'Welcome to Caltrans,' Sonoma County Supervisor Lynda Hopkins said. Caltrans spokesperson Jeffrey Weiss said the project to upgrade Guerneville's sidewalks to comply with the Americans with Disabilities Act was originally slated to begin last summer. Caltrans delayed the project start 'to minimize construction impacts on merchants during the town's busy summer season,' he said in an email. Once underway, the project hit multiple delays, such as when 'the contractor encountered unexpected underground utility wires that were inactive and not previously documented,' he said. Philip Tymon, a longtime Guerneville resident and chair of volunteer-run nonprofit River Arts, said he and others were initially excited that the sidewalk project might create opportunities to spiff up the gritty, bohemian outpost and make it look and feel like a gateway to the towns and beaches dotting the lower Russian River. But workers poured concrete in an area slated for native plant gardens. Schwanz and Hopkins said the chamber received Caltrans' blessing to paint a rainbow crosswalk where westbound River Road enters town — an apt symbol for the LGBTQ oasis. But Hopkins said they were informed this week the rainbow project was on hold because Caltrans would now require the county to seek a permit and easement to add color to pavement. 'We've had plans for rainbow crosswalks, we've had plans for a mural, we've had plans for plantings. And honestly Caltrans keeps changing its mind or making mistakes,' Hopkins said. Hopkins and business owners said it seemed that Caltrans was operating as if it was repaving a highway — as opposed to doing construction in the middle of a town where local businesses need to stay afloat. Ryan Leong, another Caltrans spokesperson, acknowledged that crews had mistakenly paved an area where the community had planned a garden and said it was working with the contractor 'to make that correction.' He said the agency was looking into the rainbow crosswalk issue but couldn't provide comment in time for publication. 'The current plans do not include any landscaping components,' he said in a statement. 'However, Caltrans will coordinate with local officials on any future efforts to add landscaping throughout the Downtown Guerneville area.' Leong didn't respond to the overall complaints from Guerneville about how the agency managed the project. Douglas DeVivo, owner of Blue Door Gallery, said he'd grown so despondent over the financial loss that he had begun planning to close his business for good. Many business owners reported their revenue had plummeted 30% to 50% so far this year, compared with last year. 'It was horrible, just plain horrible,' DeVivo said. Across the street at Piknik Town Market, owner Mags van der Veen said the impact 'was pretty severe.' 'People driving home from the coast — they wouldn't stop for lunch. They'd just keep on driving,' van der Veen said. Like many small towns across California, a state highway also serves as Main Street in Guerneville. That has left Guerneville residents few avenues to weigh in on how revamping their town — from business disruptions to aesthetics — might unfold. Guerneville is unincorporated and has no city council. The town's tax revenue flows into general county coffers. Hopkins represents the area in a sprawling district from Sebastopol to Fort Ross on the coast. 'It certainly should not take this long and be this painful and have this much economic impact,' said Hopkins, who for a time had to duck under yellow caution tape to get to her Guerneville district office. 'And yet we have zero authority over Caltrans.' The Russian River Chamber of Commerce held a fundraiser in May. Schwanz said the group distributed $18,000 among 26 businesses based on need — not enough, but something, he said. The project included widening sidewalks, installing 23 curb ramps to accommodate wheelchairs, adding traffic signals and sidewalk bulb-outs at corners crossings as well as two pedestrian beacons. It is also adding railings to the Fife Creek Bridge on the western end of town. The construction has dampened what is otherwise unfolding as a renaissance for the Russian River destination after a historic 2019 flood and pandemic-sparked business closures. New businesses such as the River Eclectic resort and swim club are drawing locals and visitors alike. Others are anticipated to open, including the Guerneville Social Club on Fourth Street. Hopkins said that some delays have been understandable, and she was told the contractor had no documentation for the pipes or old growth redwood stumps under the sidewalk's surface. Weiss also said that during the sidewalk excavation, crews 'noticed that the roadway drainage was in poor condition and extensive repairs were made.' 'To give them a small amount of grace, oftentimes old towns built a long time ago have unexpected challenges,' Hopkins said. 'And, yet, you should be prepared for that.' Today, there are signs the project is wrapping up. Rows and rows of barriers that blocked off Main Street sidewalks are mostly down. Bright white sidewalks have replaced the gritty and gray old concrete. Caltrans said the remaining work involves bump outs of the sidewalk at corners and signal lights to make pedestrian crossings safer. On a recent warm Saturday afternoon, people clinked glasses at sidewalk tables along the northern side of Main Street. Tan in Tevas and crop tops, a group of tourists stopped to look at a sun hat display outside a shop. Children skipped holding ice cream cones from Nimble and Finn's. U.S. flags flapped outside business doors — originally hung for the town's Fourth of July parade. Gilbert, who didn't stop last winter, was back on a recent July weekend and sat sipping sangria at a sidewalk table outside Trillium Winebar & Taproom, named for the flowers that thrive in the shade of redwood trees. Many business owners said they believed they would eventually rebound, but they want to help the next Main Street town on a state highway avoid a similar headache. 'If I had advice for the next community — get a lawyer,' DeVivo said.
CBS News
5 days ago
- General
- CBS News
Oakland neighbors set to transform vacant Caltrans lot into vibrant garden
When Vincent Kitirattragarn looks at the dilapidated, overgrown, vacant lot at 54th and Shattuck in Oakland, he calls a spade a spade. "I moved into this neighborhood in 2016. This corner has always been neglected, it attracts illegal dumping, there's always graffiti here," he said. But, he also sees possibility, and thinks of the famous Louis Armstrong song, "What a Wonderful World." "It goes, I see trees of green, red roses too, I see them bloom for me and you. That's really what I want here," Kitirattragarn said. "We need more beautiful public spaces in Oakland. This should be one of those spaces." So, he and neighbors are working to turn that idea into reality by transforming the lot, which is owned by Caltrans, into a community pollinator garden. "We're going to keep those redwood trees because there a great part of the space right now," Kitirattragarn told CBS News Bay Area. "We're going to create a bunch of pollinator plants around it, with a walking path, as well as areas for seating. So, you're going to see this completely transform." The hope is that it will help alleviate problems with blight and illegal dumping, an issue that many people in The Town want to see fixed. "The quality of life has declined in Oakland, it feels like, significantly, in the last five years or so," said Rob Selna, whose family roots run deep in Oakland. "It feels as though it's a time where more than ever, members of the public need to step up and fill in some of the gaps that the city has left." Selna is helping bring the pollinator garden concept to life, and he has experience on this front. He's the president of the group Sidewalk Trees and Gardens. Ten years ago, he and neighbors created the Temescal Community Garden. "What you see here now represents a transformation of a street that was really secluded, blighted, and a target for criminal and bad activities," he said. "My neighbors and I realized we needed to replace the space with something positive." Selna said studies have shown that planting trees in areas that are lacking them can be good for the environment and community itself. "They're proven to have significant environmental benefits as well as community benefits," he said. When community-led efforts like this arise, there sometimes are people who will say it is the city's job to fix issues like this and not the responsibility of the residents. Selna's response? "People are concerned about their communities. At the moment, the City of Oakland – for a variety of reasons – doesn't have the money to take care of them. So you can decide, well I'm just going to abandon the city and move on because they don't have the money to take care of it or, I'm going to help to bring the city back," he said. Selna said his group is in the process of trying to identify more spaces in Oakland that can be beautified. "In the face of the budget problems that the City of Oakland has – it really hasn't been able to pay for basic services like tree planting and maintenance, parks and rec maintenance, and public safety services," he said. Kitirattragarn said they've acquired the necessary Caltrans permits to proceed with the project. They're fundraising now, with a goal of reaching $30,000. The hope is to begin construction in October.
CBS News
6 days ago
- Automotive
- CBS News
New eastbound Highway 50 split in Sacramento to begin this week
Drivers should be aware of a new lane split on eastbound Highway 50 in Sacramento that is set to begin on Thursday. Caltrans said the new traffic split will begin at 5 a.m. Thursday at 51st Street and will continue until after the Highway 16/Howe Avenue/Power Inn Road/Hornet Drive off-ramp. The first and second lanes will be on the left of the median barrier and will serve as bypass lanes, meaning drivers will not be able to take the 59th Street, 65th Street and Howe Avenue exit. The third and fourth lanes will be to the right of the barrier, where drivers will be able to exit at 59th Street, 65th Street and Howe Avenue. The lane split is part of the Fix50 Project that is rehabilitating pavement and adding high-occupancy lanes from the Highway 50 and Interstate 5 interchange to the Highway 50 and Watt Avenue interchange. The speed limit in the work zone is 55 mph.
CBS News
15-07-2025
- Automotive
- CBS News
405 Freeway through Sepulveda Pass closed overnight for pavement project
Every night this week, up to two lanes on each side of the 405 Freeway will be closed through the Sepulveda Pass. The California Department of Transportation will begin the nightly closures at 9 p.m. each night from Monday through Saturday. The freeway will reopen at 6 a.m. every morning. Between Monday and Friday, motorists can expect up to two lanes of the northbound and southbound sides between Wilshire Boulevard and Mulholland Drive/Skirball Center Drive to be closed. On Saturday, only two lanes of the northbound 405 Freeway between Wilshire Boulevard and Mulholland Drive/Skirball Center Drive will be closed. Caltrans said they will try to keep delays capped at 15 minutes The construction is part of a $143.7 million Caltrans project that covers roughly 10 miles of the freeway between Van Nuys and Westwood. It aims at enhancing safety and improving mobility between West Los Angeles and the San Fernando Valley. Crews plan on fixing two overhead sign structures, 98 sign panel replacements, upgrading 6,400 feet of guardrails and upgrading 10 curb ramps. Caltrans expects to finish the entire project by Winter 2028 or 2029. The work schedule is subject to weather and operational reasons. Residents and businesses near the construction may experience noise, vibrations and dust.
