Sunrise light on a grove of tufa towers emerging from the water of Mono Lake with soft green and dusty-red wild grasses in the foreground, Canada geese in the shallow water with reflections of the rocky towers, and desert hills in the distance.

Caltrans Hwy 395 rockfall project report #9

Sunrise light on a grove of tufa towers emerging from the water of Mono Lake with soft green and dusty-red wild grasses in the foreground, Canada geese in the shallow water with reflections of the rocky towers, and desert hills in the distance.

Caltrans-rockfall-update-graphic

Caltrans has released the ninth road report for the Lee Vining Rockfall Safety Project on Highway 395 along Mono Lake just north of Lee Vining.

Lee Vining Rockfall Safety project update #9

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Updates are also posted regularly on Twitter and Facebook. Click here for all project updates and background. Text from the official update is below.

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Lee Vining Rockfall Safety Project

Project Update

September 2, 2016

Bishop – The California Department of Transportation (Caltrans) has begun stage 2 of the Lee Vining Rockfall Safety Project.  The two year project began in 2015.

The project’s purpose is to improve safety for the traveling public by minimizing rocks falling from the steep adjacent slopes onto US Hwy 395 in Mono County, north of Lee Vining near Mono Lake, from postmile 52.3 to 53.7.  The project also includes a plant establishment program on the six slopes involved to reduce erosion, establish healthy soil, and promote successful revegetation.

Stage 1 construction was completed in 2015 which addressed slopes 1, 2, 5, and 6.  Stage 2 construction, which includes the installation of anchored wire mesh, is now underway on slopes 3 & 4.

The traveling public should be prepared for daily lane closures with delays no longer than 20 minutes, Monday thru Saturday from 6:00 am to 6:00 pm with flaggers and a pilot car.  There will not be any lane closures during non-working hours.

In the vicinity of the Lee Vining Rockfall project, Caltrans began a $2.2 million emergency construction project on July 12, 2016 due to the Marina Fire that started on June 24th and burned 654 acres.  The emergency project repaired guardrail and included installing a temporary rockfall fence.

The contractor awarded both projects is Papich Construction Co. Inc. from Pismo Beach, CA.  Construction for both the Lee Vining Rockfall Project and the Marina Fire Emergency Project is scheduled to be completed by mid-November 2016.

For the safety of workers and other motorists, please be Work Zone Alert and Move Over where possible.

More information: