Summer tourist season at beautiful Lake Tahoe is also the time of year when road and utility departments must do their maintenance, rehabilitation and construction work. This work cannot be done in winter when snow is everywhere and the ground is frozen. The construction season is also limited by environmental concerns and local ordinances which prohibit earth moving activities between October 15 and May 1.

Most of the time from spring through fall, touring on the roads around the Tahoe Basin is a pleasant and enjoyable experience. On occasion, however, the mix of heavy summer traffic and construction can cause traffic delays and frustration for motorists.

The California Department of Transportation (CalTrans), Nevada Department of Transportation, counties and cities around Lake Tahoe and local utility companies have organized and are making a concerted effort to streamline construction projects and traffic controls to reduce inconvenience to motorists.

Even though state and local agencies and utility companies are making every effort to schedule projects to avoid peak summer traffic--from mid-July through Labor Day--the construction season is short and some work may be unavoidable in that peak vacation time period.

When work must be done on or near roadways, traffic control is quite often unavoidable, especially on narrow two-lane roads where detours are not available. This means traffic must be stopped and alternated through the work area.

This year the maximum traffic delays expected at nearly all locations will be less than 20 minutes, except for Nevada roadwork (see map). Longer delays may occur occasionally due to stalled vehicles, accidents, or equipment breakdown.

The majority of the time, no work will be done weekends or holidays. Work will generally stop at 12 noon on Fridays to allow for heavy influx of weekend traffic.

Caltrans, the Nevada Department of Transportation, counties and cities, gas, electric, telephone, cable TV and water companies, sewer districts and others working close to or on roadways around the basin have developed a Tahoe Basic traffic management plan to coordinate and streamline construction projects. The goal is to reduce inconvenience to visitors, residents and businesses in the basin.

The first choice by all the agencies is to avoid construction during peak tourist season from mid-July through labor Day. However, that will not always be possible and some work will be done during that period.

By working together, the agencies can avoid scheduling two major traffic impacting projects at the same time. If feasible, work by two different agencies in the same area may be scheduled together to reduce the need for additional traffic control at another time.

Work that is not temperature sensitive may be scheduled at night if traffic impacts would be severe during the day. Paving is an operation which requires warm daytime temperatures, so that type of work will probably be done during the day. Drain installation is not temperature sensitive and is something that might be done at night. Safety, noise and cost factors also play a role in whether work can be done at night. Shifting work hours to earlier in the day is an option that will also be considered.

Information on construction projects and possible traffic delays will be given weekly to the news media, transportation management associations, visitor centers and chambers of commerce in the basin.

As a resident or visitor to Lake Tahoe, there are some things you can do to help reduce traffic delays:

• Be aware of projects and their location and allow extra travel time if you plan to travel through a work zone.
• Call for highway conditions:
  • Caltrans Highway Information network: 1-800-427-7623 anywhere in Ca.
  • Caltrans Highway Information network: 1-916-445-1534 outside Ca.
  • Lake Tahoe Hotline: (530) 542-4636 South Lake Tahoe Nevada Side
  • Lake Tahoe Hotline: (530) 546-5253 North Lake Tahoe Nevada Side
  • Nevada Department of Transportation: (775) 793-1313 I-80 West and Nevada Highways
  • Internet Road Info, Smart Traveler.
• Tune in Caltrans Highway Advisory Radio at 1610 AM.
• Listen to local radio stations and call the chambers of commerce for updates.
• Use alternate routes if possible.
• Walk or ride a bicycle to your destination.
• Ride the bus or trolley.
• Travel during the early morning or late afternoon to avoid peak mid-day travel times.
• If you are stopped for a period of time, relax and enjoy the scenery at one of the most beautiful vacation spots in the world.