Amador County – The Upcountry Community Council heard a report on two major transportation projects at their meeting Tuesday, including the announcement of an upcoming meeting on the Pine Grove/Highway 88 Improvement Project.

The report was presented by Pine Grove resident Gary Reinoehl, who serves as the council liaison for regional transportation issues, which includes serving on the Pine Grove/Highway 88 stakeholders group.

Reinoehl said the criteria for rating the route alternatives of the Highway 88 project has been completed. “All projects that were of very high cost (over 50 million) were removed from consideration as the excessively high price was considered a fatal flaw by (Amador County Transportation Commission) and agreed to by the Stakeholders,” said Reinoehl in his report.

The project originally included 12 different alternatives for route modifications at a price tag not to exceed $40 million. The ultimate project goal is to reduce congestion, improve operations and enhance safety between the intersections at Climax Road and Tabeau Road.

Reinoehl said that of the eight remaining alternatives, four were rated low and four were rated high. He said he also introduced an alternative as approved by the Pine Grove Council “that will also be rated using the criteria and performance measures as well as cost.”

He also discussed a November 3rd public workshop on the Highway 49 Transportation Concept Report. The meeting was hosted by Caltrans with the goal of gathering local input on a long range plan it is developing for Highway 49.

Reinoehl said the agency is looking at “future needs of the highway in 20 years and beyond.” He said “Caltrans received numerous community comments as they discussed the separate segments of Highway 49 and the projected needs.”

The most important announcement of the night was a reminder about the upcoming public meeting to discuss progress on the Pine Grove/Highway 88 Corridor Project. The meeting will take place Tuesday, November 16th at Pine Grove Elementary in Pine Grove. The open house begins at 5:30 pm. A formal presentation and public comment period will begin at 6 pm. ACTC will then facilitate a workshop with individuals to discuss the project alternatives and gather ideas and feedback on potential project solutions.

Story by Alex Lane This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.