January 20, 2017 – The recent deluge of heavy rain events have caused significant damage for the County’s 560 miles of maintained roads. Initial damage assessments completed by the Nevada County Department of Public Works have estimated necessary repairs at more than $1.2 million dollars and may take upwards of 8 weeks to complete.
Maybert Road – located east of the town of Washington – continues to remain closed. Portions of the road adjacent to the south fork of the Yuba River were washed away with the recent storm. Public Works crews expect to be onsite to begin repairs and road reconstruction sometime early next week. Barring additional storms and other events that could affect construction, the county hopes to have the road open to traffic by February 3rd or sooner. In addition to providing access to local residents, the road also provides access to the water supply for Washington and is the only access for the Maybert Road at Canyon Creek Bridge Replacement Project currently under construction. This work is currently suspended until the road can be repaired.
The storm has also affected portions of Brunswick Road south of East Bennet Road. The road – which has a history of settling due to poor soils and saturated subsurface conditions – has seen a portion of the southbound lane slip away from the remaining road. County road crews have placed a temporary patch and warning signage to warn motorists of the damage and will reassess the situation next week for additional repairs. While addition road patching and repair work is likely in the coming weeks, more comprehensive repair work is not likely until later this summer.
Countywide, Public Works road crews removed 16 trees that fell on county roads and blocked local traffic. The county has started repair on more than a half dozen slides affecting local roads and continues to repair and unclog culverts and drainage ditches, clean road shoulders, fill and repair potholes, and remove tree limbs and other vegetation that could affect road safety and drainage.
In addition to this repair work, Public Works continues to receive numerous resident customer service requests from local residents. Public Works has seen 76 resident requests since January 1st and is on pace to receive and respond to 131 requests in January – more than triple what the Department typically receives in an average month. Public Works staff continues to respond to these requests and prioritizes repairs based on their severity and impact to public safety.
For additional information and storm repair updates, please visit the Nevada County Department of Public Works Facebook Page at www.facebook.com/nevcopwsocial or contact us at 530-265-1411.