LAKE COUNTY, Calif. – A project to widen and improve a portion of Highway 29 is moving forward, state officials said Tuesday.

Caltrans reported that additional biological surveys will soon begin in order to complete the final environmental impact report (EIR) for the Lake 29 Improvement Project in Lake County.

This project proposes to widen an eight-mile segment of Route 29, from near Diener Drive to the

junction of Route 29/175 near Kelseyville, in order to accommodate projected growth, improve traffic flow, and increase overall safety by providing a four-lane highway that meets current design standards.

New environmental regulations have been enacted over the last few years which require additional biological surveys of wetlands and California Red-legged Frog habitat.

These new surveys will cover a larger area than previous surveys. They will begin soon and will take several winter seasons, resulting in a final EIR in the spring of 2015.

Caltrans has refined the project to address comments received at the public open house/public hearing held August of 2007, and has worked to reduce costs and environmental impacts.

Caltrans is also working to identify ways of constructing the project in smaller phases in order to more easily obtain funding.

Construction of the first phase could begin 2018.

Updates will also be posted to the project Web site, www.dot.ca.gov/dist1/d1projects/lake29/ .

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