Road, shoulder closures set in Fresno, Madera for high-speed rail work

Several road and shoulder closures are planned in Fresno and Madera by contractors for the California High-Speed Rail Authority, including one street west of downtown Fresno that will be closed until early January.

Thorne Avenue north of Divisadero Street and Nielsen Avenue in Fresno will be closed because of construction work at the nearby Dry Creek Canal starting Monday. The rail agency and its contractor, Tutor Perini/Zachry/Parsons, expect the intersection to remain closed through Jan. 6. The site is just west of where crews are digging a trench that will carry the high-speed train tracks beneath the Dry Creek Canal, a freight railroad spur line and Highway 180.

Drivers who use Thorne Avenue to reach Nielsen Avenue or Divisadero Street from the north will be detoured around the construction by heading west on Napa Avenue to Fruit Avenue and then south on Fruit to Nielsen.

In Madera County, Raymond Road will be closed at the BNSF Railway crossing at the east edge of Madera on Thursday night for construction work on the rail project’s Fresno River Viaduct. The road will be closed starting at 7 p.m., reopening at 6 a.m. Friday. During those work hours, traffic heading east on Raymond Road will be detoured north onto Lake Street east to Road 21, and then south on Road 28  1/2 . Westbound drivers will be directed north on Road 28  1/2 , west onto Avenue 21 and then south on Road 27.

Also in Madera, shoulder closures will begin Monday on Avenue 11 and Avenue 12 for utility relocation work. On Avenue 11, the eastbound shoulder at the intersection of Road 31 will be closed from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. on weekdays for about two weeks.

On Avenue 12, portions of the eastbound and westbound shoulders between Road 30  1/2 and the BNSF Railway tracks will be closed weekdays from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. until January.

The shoulder work on Avenues 11 and 12 will not require detours or traffic control, according to the rail authority.

Updates about road closures related to high-speed rail construction are available online from the rail authority at www.buildhsr.com or from Caltrans at quickmap.dot.ca.gov.

This story was originally published October 11, 2016 at 4:31 PM with the headline "Road, shoulder closures set in Fresno, Madera for high-speed rail work."