North Carson City road projects approved

The Regional Transportation Commission gave Public Works the go-ahead to start working on a list of road projects in north Carson City.

Public Works is returning to a system of concentrating annual road work in specific areas of the city. The first performance district encompasses northeast Carson City, bound by Carson Street and Highway 50, and including College Parkway, Arrowhead Drive and Goni Road.

Using a pavement management system, Public Works prioritized five projects: College Parkway from Carson Street to Airport Road; Hot Springs Road between Carson and Roop streets; Roop Street from Old Hot Springs Road to College Parkway; Arrowhead Drive between Emerson and Convair drives; and Goni Road from College Parkway to Boeing Way.

The RTC on Wednesday directed staff to begin design on the projects, based on the ranking. The department will have about $1 million to do the work so it’s unknown how many of the roads can be completed until cost estimates are done.

Next month, RTC may get its first design report — at 30 percent design — of the South Carson Street Complete Street Project.

Carson City is taking over the road from the Nevada Department of Transportation. As part of that deal, the city agreed to begin construction on the road in 2019.

With the opening of the I-580 bypass, and a drop in traffic, the plan is to reduce South Carson Street to two lanes in both directions with a center turn lane and to add better access for pedestrians and bike riders.

Last week the Board of Supervisors approved a contract to design a roundabout at Carson and Stewart streets as part of the project.

Another item on the next RTC agenda may be a look at safety on William Street, particularly in the area of Mills Park, where Mills Landing, a residential development, is under construction and there are concerns about people, especially children, trying to cross the busy road to get to the park.

Before the RTC meeting, the Carson Area Metropolitan Planning Organization received a second year of data on the Complete Streets Performance Monitoring Program.

The program tracks pedestrian and bike traffic in four corridors — North Carson Street, downtown Carson Street, South Carson Street, and William Street.

Volume varied by season, but the most trafficked was summer, when average daily volumes for pedestrians were roughly 164 in downtown, 122 on William Street, 118 on North Carson Street, and 60 on South Carson Street. Average daily volumes for bike riders in the summer months was about 66 on North Carson Street, 41 in downtown, 38 on William Street, and 13 on South Carson Street.