highway 50

It’s hard to believe that it has been only 25 years since Kia came to the U.S. with the 88 hp Sephia. The first TV ad showed a Kia Sephia following a Honda Civic through the streets of Los Angeles (in fast motion) demonstrating it could do anything the Honda Civic could do.

SOUTH LAKE TAHOE, Calif. - It's been over three decades in the making. The US50 South Shore Community Revitalization Project, also known as the Loop Road, is getting closer to becoming a final plan and its implementation.

The South Lake Tahoe City Council heard a presentation by Tahoe Transportation District (TTD), Lew Feldman and John Hasty of Tahoe Regional Planning Agency (TRPA) on Tuesday, outlining what has been accomplished and what is left to be done.

SOUTH LAKE TAHOE, Calif. - In 2016 a group of citizens gathered enough signatures to put a measure before the voters in November of that year to prevent the City of South Lake Tahoe from taking any action on what has been known as the Loop Road project (though the official name is the US 50/South Shore Community Revitalization Project) without first getting approval by the voters.

Today the California Supreme Court put an end to that measure.

SOUTH LAKE TAHOE, Calif. - Tetrachloroethylene (PCE) was found in drinking water wells in South Lake Tahoe near the "Y" in 1989, and it remains in the groundwater today, forming a containment plume from the intersection of Highway 50 and State Route 89 and heading toward Lake Tahoe through the Tahoe Keys.

EL DORADO COUNTY, Calif. - A 40-year-old man from Fremont, California died Sunday afternoon after being hit by a car near Bridal Veil Falls on Highway 50 west of Lake Tahoe.

Ramesh Pulavarthi was standing on the driver's side of his vehicle in the #2 eastbound lane of U50 just east of the falls at 1:50 p.m. A 2010 Jeep driven by 59-year-old Sacramento man was heading east approaching the falls when he came upon Pulavarthi's vehicle that was parked in the travel lane. He swerved to the left but struck Mr. Pulavarthi who was thrown several feet and sustained fatal injuries.

SOUTH LAKE TAHOE, Calif. - Happy President's Day! What will go down as a weekend remembered for years to come, residents will continue to shovel out and get on the road to ski, shop, and work, while visitors will hit the slopes or begin a journey home that most likely took them four-five times longer than normal.

With chain controls down over Echo Summit, the journey shouldn't be hampered by snow but it will be hampered by traffic. I80 has removed some restrictions and other roads might see more of the same as the day goes on and the sun shines.

SOUTH LAKE TAHOE, Calif. - Traffic is being held in Meyers and Twin Bridges due to a snow slide on Echo Summit.

The slide occurred at approximately 3:00 p.m. and according to the CHP in Placerville, it covered some vehicles in the westbound lane. There has been a standstill line of traffic on Highway 50 through Meyers all afternoon and cars are still stopped there waiting for the road to reopen.

An Evening of nonstop laughs at Lake Tahoe Golf Course
Theatre, food, drinks, and friends will make the perfect evening out.

Fast becoming an annual winter event, Lake Tahoe Golf Course has once again partnered with the Rotary Club of South Lake Tahoe to bring you the hilarious play; Shakespeare’s Long Lost First Play (abridged) by Reed Martin and Austin Tichenor,

Performances are March 1, 2, 3, 7, 8, 9 and 10.

Location

SOUTH LAKE TAHOE, Calif. - El Dorado County Sheriff's Office responds to calls throughout the county. The following are calls that only pertain to the South and West Shore, including Meyers, South Lake Tahoe, Meeks Bay, Tahoma, and the Echo Summit area. There may be some missing calls due to sheriff's logs not being completed at the time of the story.

Some of those recently added to last week's log:

No incidents were added.

This week's log:

2/3

UPDATE 11:00 a.m. Sunday - Westbound traffic is now being allowed over Echo Summit on Highway 50. Other arteries remain closed.

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SOUTH LAKE TAHOE, Calif. - If you don't have to go anywhere through the Sierra this morning, stay home, stay dry and stay safe.

I80 is closed from the state line to Applegate.
US50 is closed from Meyers to Smith Flat. Not only is snow causing an issue, but there are also multiple trees down and powerline issues along the route.
SR 89 remains closed at Emerald Bay.
SR 88 is closed from Peddler Vista to Red Lake Creek, east of Kirkwood.

SOUTH LAKE TAHOE, Calif. - Barton Memorial Hospital received a ten-day notice from the California Nurse's Association on Monday, informing them that the nurses at the South Lake Tahoe hospital intend to strike on February 15, 2019.

Negotiations have been ongoing between the nurse's union and Barton Health since the Registered Nurses (RNs) at Barton Memorial Hospital and Lake Tahoe Surgery Center voted 123 to 17 to unionize on November 15, 2017.

SOUTH LAKE TAHOE, Calif. - If you were planning on crossing the Sierra this evening, you'll have to change those plans now that US50 over Echo Summit has been added to the road closure list.

Severe weather conditions have led to numerous accidents and stranded vehicles.

Snow at times has been falling at 4.5 inches an hour. Caltrans closed the roads for safety.

Current closures:

Interstate 80: Eastbound commercial vehicles are being turned at Applegate; passenger vehicles are being turned at Colfax. Westbound at the Nevada state line

MEYERS, Calif. - Traffic through neighborhoods in the Meyers area has become unbearable to many residents as vehicles leaving South Lake Tahoe to take to side streets in an effort to circumvent Highway 50 traffic over Echo Summit.

In an effort to find solutions to a problem that keeps Meyers residents from their homes for hours at a time, a townhall-style meeting was held on Friday night.

SOUTH LAKE TAHOE, Calif. - It's almost a perfect storm for traffic in Lake Tahoe: extra visitors in town for the holiday weekend and epic ski conditions with snow and chain requirements over US50 and Echo Summit.

On Monday, locals and visitors alike were part of that storm, leaving motorists stranded along US 50, Lake Tahoe Blvd., and all surface streets in Meyers that have a link to the highway over Echo Summit.

SOUTH LAKE TAHOE, CALIF. - El Dorado County Sheriff's Office responds to calls throughout the county. The following are calls that only pertain to the South and West Shore, including Meyers, South Lake Tahoe, Meeks Bay, Tahoma and the Echo Summit area. There may be some missing calls due to sheriff's logs not being completed at time of story.

Some of those recently added to last week's log:

1/9

One baby and two adults died in a two-car collision on Highway 50 Tuesday evening east of Placerville.

On January 15, 2019 at approximately 6:27 p.m., the California Highway Patrol (CHP) responded to the crash near the Camino Heights Drive intersection. They say a 51-year-old man from Fremont, Calif. was driving a 2005 Volvo 560 westbound at a speed around 60 mph. At the same time, a 39-year-old Pollock Pines, Calif. man was heading eastbound in a 2017 Subaru Impreza at approximately 65 mph.

SOUTH LAKE TAHOE, Calif. - One man has been arrested in connection with Friday's house fire on Kyburz Avenue in South Lake Tahoe.

Joe Johnson, 37, was arrested on a felony charge of manufacturing a controlled substance and a misdemeanor charge of obstruction of a police officer.

SOUTH LAKE TAHOE, Calif. - If you don't have to be on the roads around Lake Tahoe today, don't go.

As the beginning of fairly strong weather system has just hit the Sierra, there are not only chain controls but also a series of collisions and spinouts. The storm shouldn't have surprised anyone as warnings have been in place all week.

As of 3:30 p.m. on Saturday, January 5, 2019, chain controls are up on all mountain roads around Lake Tahoe on the California side, expected to be going up soon on the Nevada side.

PHILLIPS, Calif. - It was a much different picture of the Sierra snowpack today than what there was a year ago when the California Department of Water Resources (DWR) conducted their first monthly measurement of the snow and water content at Phillips Station, ten miles west of Lake Tahoe.

As of January 3, 2019, DWR measured the snow at 25.5 inches deep, which means the Sierra snowpack is 80 percent of normal with a snow water equivalent (SWE) of nine inches. These figures are 36 percent of the April 1 average, the date used as the maximum snowpack that will be received in the mountains.

On December 27 South Tahoe Now published an article about the unsafe practices of motorists seeking snow play along Highway 50 in South Lake Tahoe and on Echo Summit, and now Caltrans is echoing that warning for other highways in the Sierra, especially Interstate 80.

Caltrans is reminding motorists that snow play is not permitted in State Roadside Rest Areas (SRRAs) or alongside highways, onramps or offramps for the safety of the public and other drivers.

SOUTH LAKE TAHOE, Calif. - The snow has fallen and the kids are out of school so it's time for many to hit the Sierra. Skiers and boarders have the slopes but where do sledders and those just wanting to play go?

Many stop on the highway and pull onto the shoulder (well, sort of) and head to the patch of snow. This behavior is causing problems for law enforcement, other drivers and is an accident waiting to happen.

SOUTH LAKE TAHOE, CALIF. - El Dorado County Sheriff's Office responds to calls throughout the county. The following are calls that only pertain to the South and West Shore, including Meyers, South Lake Tahoe, Meeks Bay, Tahoma and the Echo Summit area. There may be some missing calls due to sheriff's logs not being completed at time of story.

Some of those recently added to last week's log:

12/12

SOUTH LAKE TAHOE, CALIF. - El Dorado County Sheriff's Office responds to calls throughout the county. The following are calls that only pertain to the South and West Shore, including Meyers, South Lake Tahoe, Meeks Bay, Tahoma and the Echo Summit area. There may be some missing calls due to sheriff's logs not being completed at time of story.

Some of those recently added to last week's log:

12/2
8:13 a.m. - Doctor's Case, Lake Tahoe

12/5

SOUTH LAKE TAHOE, CALIF. - El Dorado County Sheriff's Office responds to calls throughout the county. The following are calls that only pertain to the South and West Shore, including Meyers, South Lake Tahoe, Meeks Bay, Tahoma and the Echo Summit area. There may be some missing calls due to sheriff's logs not being completed at time of story.

Some of those recently added to last week's log:

11/28
12:43 p.m. - Burglary - Rubicon Trail, Tahoma - A CABIN WAS BURGLARIZED.