Video captures aerial view of roadwork
When San Diego Country Estates resident Wolf Paulus filmed an aerial view of the San Vicente Road work, he said watching the video gave him a new perspective of the three-phased construction project.
“It’s had to make sense of it if you drive through it,” he said, explaining that it looks confusing because there are construction vehicles, piles of dirt and various work being done throughout the 2.25-mile segment from Warnock Drive to Wildcat Canyon Road. Paulus said he wondered why crews wouldn’t complete one section at a time.
As soon as he saw his photos, he said he understood.
“It gives you a whole new perspective,” he said.
His aerial, shot by attaching a camera to his 1-1/2-foot, two-pound quadcopter, shows the pathway of the new road, and where gaps have had to be filled, he said.
“You actually see they made good progress,” said Paulus.
When he sent the video to the county, Michael Long, the project manager, contacted him, requesting permission to place the video on the county’s San Vicente Project website for public viewing.
“I thought it provided a nice birds-eye view of the project,” said Long.
The four-minute video, available at www.sandiegocounty.gov/content/sdc/dpw/engineering/topprojects/san-vicente-road-improvement.html or ramonaphoto.com was shot in two trips by the quadcopter, which is often referred to as a drone.
Paulus said he may film another video of the road project in the future.
Considering the time for filming and editing, he said, “It’s a good weekend project.”
In addition to realigning the road, crews are installing a new water main to replace the Ramona Municipal Water District’s 42-year-old main that serves the Estates. The pipeline project is costing the district nearly $5 million but is required because the existing line is in the county’s right-of-way. That was allowed when it was installed in 1973.
As of last week, crews had installed approximately 1,000 feet of the approximately 19,000 feet of new water main along the San Vicente Road project’s segment, according to the county. The pipeline installations will be ongoing throughout the project, estimated to be completed in spring 2016.
According to Long, existing water mains consist of 6-inch, 12-inch and 14-inch pipes.
“Some portions of each will be removed where necessary to construct the new roadway and utility services, and others will be abandoned where no conflicts with new construction exist,” he said.
Crews are also digging joint utility trenches that will underground some of the San Diego Gas & Electric and AT&T overhead lines. The trenching will occur throughout the length of the project.
As for challenges, Long said, “The largest project challenge continues to be the balance of maximizing both traffic safety and public convenience during construction.”
Doug Kafka, president of the San Diego Country Estates Association, said he is surprised at the infrequency of traffic interruptions. “I think they’ve been pretty responsible in helping traffic move along.”
In the next month, drivers will see much of the same “while the contractor continues to construct the new roadway outside of the existing traffic control and prepare for the pending traffic shift to accommodate the next stage of construction,” said Long.