Post by forest on Feb 15, 2009 11:20:58 GMT -8
Plan in works to open Highway 39 section
ANGELES NATIONAL FOREST - Caltrans has begun the process in a potential construction effort that would reopen a portion of Highway 39 that has been closed for 30 years.
But there may be a strong group opposed to such construction and they are showing their horns.
The stretch of highway is the four mile portion prior to where Highway 39 and Highway 2 meet.
The portion was closed in 1978 for safety reasons as previous fires and inclement weather made the road dangerous, officials said.
The project will repair the road, but also put in measures that would prevent future rockslides, mudslides and other problems, said Caltrans Environmental Planner Eduardo Aguilar.
"Drivers will not have to dodge rocks," Aguilar said. "It will increase response time (for emergency crews) making the area safer. Every second counts when a life is on the line."
With an open and clear road, rescue teams and fire departments will have an easier time navigating through the area, he said.
In addition, passage to Highway 2 would be cleared, given that other portions of 39 are open, and more recreation in the area would be open to residents.
Caltrans is in the environmental stage of the process. They plan to weigh the effects of the estimated $43 million project on the environment and discuss it with stakeholders.
And one of the areas of concern coming out of that process is for the Bighorn Sheep.
"That has been a huge challenge," Aguilar said.
The Bighorn Sheep aren't an endangered species in the area, but are listed as a "species of concern," according to associate biologist with the Department of Fish and Game Jeff Villepique.
"The ones in San Gabriel haven't reached (endangered status) and we would like to keep it that way," Villepique said.
Villepique and others are concerned about car collisions with the animals. The sheep migrate through the mountains, often cutting across the roads and with new traffic flowing through, that puts the Bighorn at risk, Villepique said.
"In a perfect world ... we would have the highway going through tunnels," Villepique said. "Since that is not practical, realistically, it looks like we are really trying to look at keeping the speeds down."
Warning signs and lowered speed limits are probable, but one idea being floated around is speed bumps, but Villepique doesn't believe that will be well received.
Bighorn Sheep are usually found in steep, rugged terrain and in isolated populations. They are one of the rarest of large mammals with about 5,000 in California, Villepique said.
But concern for the Bighorn Sheep is secondary to moving toward having an extra emergency route for the San Gabriel Valley, said California Trail Users Coalition board member Barret Wetherby.
"I have never heard of anyone hitting a Bighorn Sheep on the road up there," he said.
Right now, residents are limited to the 5 and 15 freeways to get out of town in an emergency, Wetherby said. With this project, it is a move in the right direction to once again have an alternate means of travel.
"If you had a major occurrence in the valley, how would you get out?" said Wetherby, who is a member of the California Trail Users Coalition.
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