Motorists traveling along Sunrise Boulevard are advised to plan for potential delays and use alternate routes when possible during work hours while workers are in the roadway and traffic is reduced to a single lane, guided by traffic cones in each direction.

 

CITRUS HEIGHTS, CA (MPG) - An independent contractor working on behalf of the Sacramento Municipal Utility District (SMUD) removed eight palm trees from the traffic median along Sunrise Boulevard to support an upcoming transformer replacement project that is planned this fall, according to the utility.

Although eight palm trees were taken down from Sayonara Drive toward Greenback Lane, more than 12 remain in the median leading from PetSmart toward Citrus Town Center at Greenback Lane. 

The Sunrise MarketPlace Business Improvement District has installed dozens of palm trees along Sunrise Boulevard which feature distinctive Sunrise MarketPlace signage, lighting and banners.

Work began on Aug. 4 and continues through the end of the month on Sunrise Boulevard, just south of Sayonara Drive. Hours of work will typically be from 8:30 to 3:30 p.m.

By Aug. 6, workers had fully excavated the median in the SMUD project area along Sunrise Boulevard and prepared the surrounding pavement for removal. 

Motorists traveling along Sunrise Boulevard are advised to plan for potential delays and use alternate routes when possible during work hours while workers are in the roadway and traffic is reduced to a single lane, guided by traffic cones in each direction.

Large trucks and equipment that will need access to the SMUD substation yard during the installation of new transformers will turn in and out from this road onto Sunrise Boulevard. Photo by Thomas J. Sullivan

SMUD intends to reconstruct the median on Sunrise Boulevard just south of Sayonara Drive to include a new left-turn pocket, which will serve the Sunrise Vista mobile home park residents on the west side of the street at 6525 Sunrise Blvd.

On the east side of Sunrise Boulevard, just opposite the mobile home park from the new left-turn pocket, a fenced private road provides direct access to a SMUD substation where the transformer replacement project will take place.

SMUD's transformer project is scheduled to start sometime this late fall/early winter. Large trucks and equipment which will need access to the SMUD substation yard during the installation of new transformers will turn in and out from this road onto Sunrise Boulevard. 

The only way that the utility claims it could accommodate the oversized loads expected during the construction project was to remove and modify the median, according to a company spokesman.

According to SMUD, the left turn lane onto Sayonara Drive which is governed by a traffic signal will remain unchanged.

A specialized Caltrans design will allow SMUD trucks to drive over the reconstructed median curbs during future deliveries, while still allowing standard vehicle traffic to safely turn left.