Final leg of Carson City freeway project to start by summer

The Nevada Department of Transportation’s Carson City Freeway Project has reached an important milestone with the recent opening of construction contract bids for the project’s final leg.

Road and Highway Builders’ approximately $42 million bid was named as the apparent low bid for the project. Final bid approval and contract execution will take place in future weeks, with the contract pending ultimate approval at the state transportation board’s May 11 meeting.

Construction, which will pave and open the last approximately four miles of the freeway to traffic between Fairview Drive and the Spooner/U.S. 50 junction in south Carson City, is scheduled to begin this June. The project is expected to complete, opening the final segment of freeway to traffic, in 2017.

The new intersection of the Carson City Freeway and U.S. 50 at Spooner junction is planned as a signalized, at-grade intersection. A free right turn lane between southbound Carson Street and westbound U.S. 50 to Lake Tahoe will be part of the project to allow slow-speed right hand turns. With funding from federal transportation funds, the state highway fund and Carson City, the project is aimed at increasing traffic mobility and safety with an interstate bypass alternative to help remove through-traffic congestion from downtown Carson City. An estimated 43,000 vehicles daily are projected to use the section of freeway by 2035.

The previous construction phase wrapped up last summer, including excavation of nearly 300,000 cubic yards of earth for both drainage detention basins and roadway, construction of nearly two and a half miles of storm drain and sewer and water lines and placement of 15,000-plus tons of base and paving. The construction laid the groundwork for the next phase of paving and work to be completed as part of upcoming construction.

Drivers can expect periodic lane closures on South Carson Street near U.S. 50 during future construction of the Carson City Freeway/U.S. 395 intersection.
Further project information is available at www.ccfreeway.com or (775) 888-7000.