Road closures set as travelers leave South Lake Tahoe on Labor Day

SOUTH LAKE TAHOE, Calif. - The second of two pilot plan holiday weekends designed to help alleviate traffic congestion on Meyer's back roads will take place on Monday, September 2 from 9:00 a.m. to 6:00 p.m.

Holiday traffic from South Lake Tahoe that heads west on Highway 50 over Echo Summit has been directed by apps like Waze and Google Maps to take side roads as the quickest route home. The redirected routes go through neighborhoods and block residents from their homes.

There are two changes to the 4th of July weekend process, the first of the pilot plan days: El Dorado County's Department of Transportation (DOT) will fully close both lanes of North Upper Truckee and Sawmill Roads at their intersection with Highway 50 and barriers will also be added that go completely across the road, shoulder to shoulder to prevent vehicles from getting through.

Another change is that DOT employees will physically be present at those barriers, along with flashing lights, and will contact CHP should any drivers attempt to move or bypass the barriers/closures. During the 4th people went around the barriers, thus sending a message to traffic apps that the road was open. That message from the app then gets drivers onto North Upper Truckee and Sawmill, then they just have to turn around at the closure and get over to Highway 50.

Residents in these two areas will still be able to get to their homes from the Lake Tahoe Boulevard end.

The move to close these two intersections is to help combat travelers clogging residential roads, something that became out of control this past winter.