YOUR AD HERE »

Kingsbury Grade could be closed on Carson Valley side for weeks

Record-Courier Staff Report
A mud slide on the eastern side of Kingsbury Grade indicates how much moisture fell during a recent storm.
Courtesy / Nevada Department of Transportation |

Work on Kingsbury Grade is estimated to take a few weeks, according to the Nevada Department of Transportation.

Crews had to clear 7 feet of snow last week so they could start excavating a drainage pipe that undermined the highway.

“They then worked through the weekend, excavating roughly 30 feet down to remove and replace the aging pipe,” Nevada Department of Transportation spokeswoman Meg Ragonese said on Monday. “Some of the next steps will include rebuilding and replacing the roadway above the drainage pipe. Crews will be working as quickly and efficiently as possible to repair this section of Kingsbury Grade, but because some elements of the repair work are weather and temperature sensitive, there is no definite date set for reopening.”



A sinkhole where the drainage pipe crosses the highway developed last month, prompting the state to close the highway on Jan. 3. Workers replaced the pipe and patched the road, opening it three days later on Jan. 6.

However, heavy rain on Jan. 8 eroded around the patch and the state closed the main route between Carson Valley and Lake Tahoe.



In 2014, NDOT reconstructed a different section of Kingsbury Grade, making improvements to roadway surface, drainage, curb and gutter and more.

The current closure area is east of the reconstructed roadway, and not in the same area that was reconstructed.

The state already has scheduled a project to invest approximately $5 million to enhance roadway drainage and erosion control on this lower section of Kingsbury Grade in 2019. When open, this section of road is traveled by approximately 5,600 vehicles daily.

Kingsbury is open on the Lake Tahoe side from U.S. 50 to Tramway.


Support Local Journalism

Support Local Journalism

Readers around the Lake Tahoe Basin and beyond make the Tahoe Tribune's work possible. Your financial contribution supports our efforts to deliver quality, locally relevant journalism.

Now more than ever, your support is critical to help us keep our community informed about the evolving coronavirus pandemic and the impact it is having locally. Every contribution, however large or small, will make a difference.

Your donation will help us continue to cover COVID-19 and our other vital local news.