Mountain Ranch, Valley Springs road work eyed

Bringing relief to the lines of waiting motorists at the intersection of highways 12 and 26 is Calaveras County’s top priority in seeking regional transportation funding.

A request for $870,000 for the intersection leads a priority list of transportation projects approved Tuesday by the county Board of Supervisors. The list will be submitted to the Calaveras Council of Governments, a city-county transportation planning agency which uses it in administering state and federal dollars.

The county is seeking more than $2.4 million total. Though the county may not have all its requests awarded, the money will help against a $6 million annual deficit at the Public Works Department, Director Tom Garcia told the board.
   

Second on the list is a request for $105,000 for maintenance work on five aging bridges, work that Caltrans expects the county to complete within two years, according to the staff report.

The bridges cross Jesus Maria Creek at Whiskey Slide Road, San Domingo Creek at Dogtown Road, Calaveritas Creek at Calaveritas Road, French Gulch at Dogtown Road and the Calaveras River at Hogan Dam Road.   

The third project consists of doing $45,000 in biological assessments on three bridges the state has classified as having unstable foundations, according to the report. The assessments are required prior to stabilizing the bridges.

The bridges are the Cosgrove Creek Bridge, the Haupt Creek Bridge and the Jesus Maria Creek Bridge.

Supervisor Russ Thomas was shocked at the high price tag. “Whatever vegetation was there, whatever plants were there, are gone,” he said.

The cost of the work is due to presence of red-legged frogs and tiger salamanders, each endangered species, in the county and the accompanying environmental requirements, Garcia said.

Another project, fifth on the list, would improve the shoulder, install guardrails and add rumble strips on Mountain Ranch Road. Residents in the area have been pushing for safety improvements on the road for the last few years.

"What I see on this list is a connection between where the accidents happen and where the projects are,” said Supervisor Steve Wilensky, whose district includes Mountain Ranch and who has pushed for changes on the road. “And that’s very responsive.”

The staff report noted that the road’s fatality rate is 35 times the state average.

Another notable project is a 2,500-foot pedestrian walkway from Albert Michelson Elementary School to Scott Street in Murphys. The $830,000 path will run parallel to Pennsylvania Gulch Road, Highway 4 and Jones Street.

Supervisor Tom Tryon, whose district includes Murphys, called the project “long overdue.” Students crossing Highway 4 are increasingly at risk, he said.

Garcia received a relatively good reception from the supervisors, though the highly parochial nature of the list led to some sharp questions, particularly from Tryon.

“We kill for road money,” Supervisor Merita Callaway warned Garcia. “That’s sacrosanct for all of us.”