Date: November 5, 2026

District: District 3 - Marysville

Jalwat Hicks, Interim District Director

Contact: Jeremy Linder (530) 701-5209

Traffic Shift Along State Route 49 Scheduled Next Week

Temporary Detour in Place for Various Driveways and County Roads

NEVADA COUNTY – Caltrans is alerting motorists of a scheduled traffic shift along State Route 49 (SR 49) near Grass Valley between Wellswood Way and McKnight Way as part of the $124.9 million SR 49 Corridor Improvement Project.

Crews will begin shifting lanes and moving temporary concrete barriers starting at 8 p.m. Sunday, November 8 with the traffic shift scheduled to be in place by 6 a.m. Monday, November 9. Once work is complete, both the northbound and southbound lanes will shift towards the east onto the temporary pavement constructed earlier this season. This temporary alignment will remain in place throughout the 2027 construction season.

As a result of the traffic shift, driveways and county roads west of SR 49 between Bethel Church Way and Crestview Drive will be reconfigured and require a detour from 6 a.m. Monday, November 9 through 3 p.m. Friday, November 13. 

Driveway access will be maintained for local traffic during this time with flaggers and a pilot car, utilizing the old highway alignment. Motorists are encouraged to factor in additional time for anticipated delays due to crews relocating equipment as needed to facilitate movement.

• Motorists looking to enter SR 49 will wait for the pilot car and follow in the appropriate direction.
• Motorists traveling along northbound SR 49 looking to connect to their driveway will turn left onto Bethel Church Way and wait at the flagger for the pilot car.
• Motorists traveling along southbound SR 49 looking to connect to their driveway will turn right onto Crestview Drive and wait at the flagger for the pilot car.

State Route 49 Corridor Improvement Project map showing the various driveways impacted by the scheduled traffic shift and the flagging locations to enter and exit the detour.

The schedule is subject to change or be delayed due to weather, availability of materials or other unexpected events.

Granite Construction, Inc. of Sacramento is the prime contractor. The project will construct a two-way left-turn lane, right-turn lanes, 10-foot shoulders, and a northbound slow-moving truck lane along SR 49. An additional southbound truck-climbing lane and a new entrance to the Nevada County Transit Operations Center will also be constructed. Work is expected to be completed by the end of 2028.

The project is partially funded by $7.9 million from Senate Bill (SB) 1, the Road Repair and Accountability Act of 2017, which provides $5 billion annually for transportation projects. Learn more about statewide infrastructure projects at build.ca.gov.

Caltrans District 3 is responsible for maintaining and operating 4,385 lane miles in 11 Sacramento Valley and Northern Sierra counties. Caltrans reminds motorists to “Be Work Zone Alert” and slow in construction zones for the safety of travelers and crews performing these improvements.

Caltrans issues construction and road condition updates on X @CaltransDist3 and on Facebook at CaltransDistrict3. For real-time traffic information, click on Caltrans’ QuickMap quickmap.dot.ca.gov/ or download the QuickMap app from the App Store or Google Play.

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