Echo Summit officially closed for at least 10 days
Echo Summit closed at noon today. Access to the South Shore via Highway 50 is cutoff for 10 to 14 days while Caltrans replaces the rock retaining wall.
Highway 50 is open from the west to near the top of the summit so places like Echo Lakes can be accessed. It’s closed at the base of the summit in Meyers on the east side.
The sign seems to imply Caltrans is encouraging computing while driving. Photo/LTN
Highway 50 will be open with no restrictions on Memorial Day weekend.
Expect the alternate routes to add an hour of travel.
Suggested routes from the Bay Area and Central Valley are:
• From Sacramento: Exit at Power Inn Road and take Highway 16 east to Highway 49 south, at Highway 88 in Jackson, turn left (east). Take that to Highway 89 and turn left again (north), and follow it back to Highway 50 in South Lake Tahoe.
• From Placerville: Exit at Missouri Flat Road and take Highway 49 south. Follow it to Highway 88 in Jackson and turn left (east), at Highway 89 turn left (north) and follow it back to Highway 50 in South Lake Tahoe.
Wendy David of South Lake Tahoe said she drove between home and Placerville and back on Monday and was surprised by the amount of work that was done between 2-8pm. She said one lane of the road was torn up, as was part of the wall.
That was the first day the contractor was working on the road.
Sue Novasel, who lives at the base of the summit in Meyers, said the blasting from the project has been a bit disconcerting.
When the road does open, it will be to controlled traffic for about six weeks.
More information is online.
— Kathryn Reed
As much as I am willing to rip into this decision, I can’t. I consider the options and the opportunity, I think on the timming and the AMGEN… all that stuff, still, I can’t say that I could have scheduled this any better than they have. It is kinda difficult to not just lay into what seems a very stupid time to do this, but I think this is about the best availiable time to do it. Safety is more important than a bike race, slow down, before you screeeem about the priority of tourism dollars, I gotta think the AMGEN wont bring as much as Memorial weekend, If you don’t do the work now, and not Memotial day, then your looking at putting mid summer tourism to the test, that means actual international trafic thru the South shore. The 4th is too big and the end of summer is too chancy, beside the end of summer is spent trying to get the loose ends tied up before the temps fall again. Gotta say, it “sounds” stupid to close now, but I think it just has to be.
This closure is actually the best thing to happen to Amgen and the promoters. When and if no one shows up or the numbers come in really low they have something to blame it on and get funding for it next year. If the road was not closed and no one showed up do you think they would try it again? Do you think anyone would back it? I think it was a good idea and will give us a much needed boost in advertisement but I really don’t think we are or would get 35,000 people up here. Anything is better than nothing.
“Anything is better than nothing.”
Finally someone said it.
Be honored that an event like this went through the effort to be here in the first place. It is mid May. There is nothing going on here for a month or more.
So many whiners.
lol,right boo-boo!
All of your who are complaining of the noise “put on your big girl panties and deal with it.”
The work needs to be done and it will be over soon.
As for the Caltrans sign, “it is information” and nothing more. If you are stupid enough to use the site while driving, hope you get caught.