High-speed rail work permanently closes two road sections in the Fresno area
Drivers in and near Fresno will have to adapt to new traffic patterns as sections of road are permanently closed by work on the state’s high-speed rail route.
A half-mile stretch of Golden State Boulevard between Olive and Belmont avenues, along the east edge of Roeding Park in central Fresno, was closed on Monday, the city of Fresno reported. The closure is to enable work by contractors for the California High-Speed Rail Authority to build a new Belmont Avenue overpass to carry traffic up and over the existing Union Pacific Railroad freight tracks and the future bullet-train route through Fresno.
Alternative routes include using nearby Highway 99 or Marks Avenue.
The Belmont overpass will replace an existing underpass that runs under the UPRR tracks.
South of Fresno, Lincoln Avenue will be permanently closed between Cedar and Maple avenues to make way for the high-speed rail route. That closure is scheduled for May 1, and will result in the creation of two cul-de-sacs, one east of the train tracks and one on the west.
Both work areas are part of the 117-mile portion of the high-speed rail route now under construction in Fresno, Kings, Madera, Tulare and Kern counties. The California High-Speed Rail Authority hopes to begin initial testing of electric-powered trains in 2028 and begin operating passenger service between Merced and Bakersfield between 2030 and 2033.
