US Highway 50 East Shore Corridor Management Plan
Tahoe Chamber | January 17, 2023 | Government Affairs
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Tahoe Chamber has received several inquiries – “Does the Chamber support the Nevada Department of Transportation’s Corridor Management Plan (CMP) for US Highway 50 on the East Shore”?
Tahoe Chamber does not have a position on the proposed CMP. Our role to date has been to promote the opportunities for community engagement and public input as the management plan is developed.
That being said, we are familiar with the data gathered by NDOT on the chronic high speeds and the number of serious crashes, including fatalities, along the corridor. Also, with the challenges of making safer what are currently perilous turning movements in and out of many of the neighborhoods and small business district along the corridor as well as safety concerns and user conflicts with the current patterns of on-highway parking. As the operator of US 50 in Nevada, a federally-designated highway, NDOT cannot simply ignore the documented safety concerns and leave the corridor “status quo.”
In today’s world, we recognize that highways are not simply roadways. They must serve as multi-modal corridors that include balanced opportunities for bicycles, pedestrians, and public transit and transit-supporting infrastructure. NDOT engineers and their engineering consultants are working diligently to balance all of the mobility needs and uses of the corridor, not just those of vehicles. In addition to other state and federal requirements, the final Corridor Management Plan must be consistent with the adopted Lake Tahoe Regional Transportation Plan (see trpa.gov/rtp/)
Unfortunately, there is a great deal of misinformation, some deliberate, being spread in the community about the draft elements of the evolving US 50 East Shore Corridor Management Plan.
Currently, we know that the CMP project team, which includes NDOT engineers and planners and their consultants, are reviewing and evaluating all of the community input received to date. NDOT maintains a project website at nevadadot.com/US50eastshore. Tahoe Chamber encourages all interested parties to review the information on that website. The site includes links to the Existing Conditions Report, Existing Conditions Summary, Future Study Scenarios, as well as a set of responses to frequently asked questions (FAQ).
Information on the site points out that any improvements identified and recommended in the final CMP will take many years to process through the required project permitting process and to secure the funding necessary for implementation. We note that one important improvement project that has been in the planning and design stages for years is scheduled for construction this year or next. That is the traffic signal and related safety improvements at the currently dangerous intersection of US 50 and Warrior Way in Zephyr Cove. One safety project was completed this past year – the new safer entrance and exit connecting US 50 with Round Hill Pines Resort.
Tahoe Chamber appreciates the inquiries on where we stand on the project. The Chamber Board of Directors may consider a ”position” at some future date, but the planning process is still ongoing.