Caltrans studies concrete barriers for State Route 67

By KAREN BRAINARD

Caltrans is studying the feasibility of concrete median barriers down the center of State Route 67 and hopes to have a project report completed by next summer.

Due to head-on collisions on the highway that have resulted in fatalities, residents have called for more safety measures along the route.

In response, rumble strips, speed feedback signs and other safety measures were installed, Joe Hull, office chief with Caltrans traffic operations said, and “we have seen a decrease in the cross-median collisions.”

Some residents suggested a concrete barrier down the center of the highway to prevent drivers from crossing into the opposite lane. Hull said Caltrans has been studying the possibility of a concrete median barrier from the current barrier near Vigilante Road in Lakeside to just south of Highland Valley Road.

The report, he said, will provide engineering design and environmental analysis and will consider installing barriers for that entire section, installing them only in select areas, and “no build.”

“A lot of locations, there’s not a lot of room to put barriers in,” he said.

Another problem with a center barrier would be access to and from driveways or side streets, he said.

Once the report is completed, it will be available for public review and comment, he said.