Traffic

SOUTH LAKE TAHOE, Calif. - The stories of 10-15 hours to get to Lake Tahoe from the Bay Area on Friday were not isolated, and many of the repeat reports are occurring on Saturday.

Epic ski conditions have beckoned visitors to the mountains over the three-day holiday weekend, but what created those ski conditions has also caused local roads that aren't passable and clogged highways with frequent closures.

SOUTH LAKE TAHOE, Calif. - Crews from Liberty Utilities are in the South Upper Truckee area to restore power to 152 customers. They say there may be a delay in restoration as there are an accident and heavy traffic in the area impeding the crew's response.

Out in Alpine County, 152 customers are without power and crews are searching for the cause of the outage at this hour.

As more information becomes available this story will be updated.

SOUTH LAKE TAHOE, Calif. - The California Highway Patrol (CHP) has created electronic closures on two roads in Meyers ahead of a snowy, crowded three-day holiday weekend in Lake Tahoe.

Two of the culprits in recent standstill traffic jams as visitors depart Lake Tahoe at the end of a weekend are electronically closed until Monday, February 18 at 9:00 p.m.

Closures of Sawmill Road and North Upper Truckee were initiated by the CHP in Meyers, then uploaded by Caltrans onto Waze, Google and other maps systems used on cellphones.

LAKE TAHOE, Nev. - During the storm that hit Lake Tahoe on Saturday, February 9, several drivers decided to ignore closure signs on the Mt. Rose Highway and proceed without complying to chain requirements on the open portions. These vehicles became stuck in the heavy snowfall or stopped due to zero visibility white-out conditions, leading rescuers into what they call "life-threatening conditions."

SOUTH LAKE TAHOE, Calif. - The main artery between South Lake Tahoe and Sacramento has reopened to westbound traffic after road crews are working on clearing away 2-3 feet of new snow on US50. Eastbound traffic is being held four miles east of Placerville.

I80 remains closed at this hour as do the Mt. Rose Highway and state routes 88 and 267.

It will take a while to clear all roads, and those that are clear will see heavy traffic as the weekend visitors make their way home.

Do you know what it is like to be caged like a wild animal? Do you know what it is like to scratch at the insides of a jail cell wall as you scream for your freedom? Do you know what it is like to have your nightmares as your only company?

I can’t say that I know what it’s like. I really can’t.

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.

Two drug traffickers were sentenced today to a total of 16 years in federal prison after a traffic stop in Carson City for speeding led to the discovery of large quantities of methamphetamine and heroin in their car.

Danny Lyle Jensen II, 39, and Kimberly Lopes, 37, both of Henderson, Nevada, were sentenced to 130 months and 63 months, respectively, and five years of supervised release by U.S. District Judge Howard D. McKibben. They previously pleaded guilty to conspiracy to possess with intent to distribute and to distribute at least 500 grams of methamphetamine.

LAKE TAHOE, CA/NV – Lake Tahoe needs our help. The “Jewel of the Sierra” is being loved to death. The vast amount of trips being made by motor vehicles have contributed to severe traffic congestion, unsafe conditions for cars, pedestrians, and cyclists, mounting air pollution, declining lake clarity, and other negative impacts.

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

As January is Human Trafficking Awareness Month, one might ask, “exactly what is human trafficking?”

Human trafficking is defined as the recruitment, transportation, transfer, harboring, or receipt of persons by means of coercion, abduction, fraud, deception, for the purpose of exploitation. Sex trafficking is defined as a commercial sex act that is induced by force, fraud, or coercion, or in which the person induced to perform such act has not attained 18 years of age. Of particular note is the automatic classification of trafficking in children under 18 years of age.

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.

Snowglobe 2018 is now in the books. There have been some successes as well as some difficulties. This year saw the introduction of professional sound engineers to help reduce the sound and new field protection to prevent further damage to our new play fields. The sound is reported to have been improved for many though the people who live nearest this event in Pioneer Village, along the Bijou Meadow, around Johnson Lane and in Sierra Tract continue to be bombarded by three days of sound.

The following is a recap of activity for the South Lake Tahoe Police Department from January 3 - 10, 2019. They responded to 221 calls during this period. Last week's report for December 20, 2018 - January 2, 2019.

Calls Resulting in Arrests/Citations:

1/3 - 29 calls

Driving on a suspended/revoked license in the 3400 block of Lake Tahoe Blvd.
Warrant in the 3500 block of Lake Tahoe Blvd.
Felony "Other" in the 2600 block of Lake Tahoe Blvd.

SOUTH LAKE TAHOE, Calif. - SR-89 around Emerald Bay remains closed this afternoon and SR-88 at Kirkwood is expected to reopen shortly after a storm passed through Lake Tahoe, dumping snow and rain on the region.

Due to I-80 closing for most of Sunday because of white-out conditions and unsafe roads, many of those travelers headed to the South Shore to try and use US-50 to go over Echo Summit. That combined with the exodus of tourists in town to ski, many surface streets throughout Meyers and South Lake Tahoe remained jammed with standstill traffic for hours.

Nevada's 30th governor will take office on Monday, Jan. 7 at an inauguration ceremony held in front of the State Capitol in Carson City.

Stephen F. Sisolak, Nevada's first Democratic governor in two decades, was elected on Nov. 6, 2018. He will take the oath of office on the front steps of the Capitol Monday at 11:30 a.m., according to his inauguration web site.

Capitol grounds will open prior to the ceremony at 10:30 a.m. and a public reception will follow at the Nevada State Library and Archives located on the northeast corner of the Capitol complex.

The following is a recap of activity for the South Lake Tahoe Police Department from December 20, 2018 - January 2, 2019. They responded to 781 calls during this period.

Calls Resulting in Arrests/Citations:

12/20 - 36 calls
DUI at Lake Pkwy and Lower Loop Rd
Warrant in the 2500 block of Ponderosa

12/21 - 36 calls
DUI in the 1000 block of Lake Tahoe Blvd
Drunk in Public in the 2500 block of Conestoga
Battery on a Peace Officer at Fairway Ave and Glenwood Way

12/22 - 57 calls

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.

The Douglas County Sheriff’s Office is preparing for the upcoming New Year’s Eve celebration at Lake Tahoe starting on Monday, December 31, 2018.

Due to the high volume of celebrants within the Stateline casino core area during this event, U.S. Highway 50 may be closed to vehicle traffic in the evening if necessary for public safety. If that should occur, vehicle traffic will be diverted around the Stateline casino core area using upper and lower Lake Parkway Drive. In past years, the road has closed anywhere from 9:00 p.m. to 1:00 a.m.

STATELINE, Nev. - Drivers can expect periodic single lane closures on Kingsbury Grade as the Nevada Department of Transportation (NDOT) cleans highway storm drains.

SOUTH LAKE TAHOE, Calif. - Emma, the world’s first digital mountain assistant, announced she is vailable to guide guests at nine Vail Resort properties, including Vail, Beaver Creek, Breckenridge and Keystone in Colorado; Park City in Utah; Whistler Blackcomb in Canada; and Heavenly, Northstar and Kirkwood in Tahoe. Guests can text Emma their questions at 77477.

SOUTH LAKE TAHOE, Calif. - In less than one week thousands of electronic dance music and festival fans will flock to South Lake Tahoe for th eighth annual SnowGlobe Music Festival which runs December 29-31.

Before anything started to be assembled at the Community Playfields on Al Tahoe Blvd., which are home to SnowGlobe, three different types of mats went onto the field surface to protect it from damage, almost 240,000 square feet total. In 2017 the new fields suffered major damange before local youth ever got a chance to play on them, something SnowGlobe organizers repaired.