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Friday, 20 March 2009 |
 Amador County – The Amador County Transportation Commission board of directors saw the latest plans for the Ione Bypass Wednesday, and heard the latest cost estimate for the plan. Matt Boyer of Dokken Engineering said the total package would cost an estimated $113 Million dollars, including land acquisition, construction and engineering. But the biggest news was seeing the preferred route on paper for the first time. Boyer said the bypass, now referred to by the city of Ione as the “Western Ione Roadway Improvement Strategy,” had the main objective of alleviating the “largest amount of traffic from downtown Ione.” Its various segments, A through H, would connect Highway 104 in the east back to itself on the west side, and north side of town. Boyer said a recent meeting with Caltrans and District 10 chief of Rural planning and administration, Dan Brewer, was the “best and most productive meeting with Caltrans that he has had in his 20-year career.” The meeting showed that Ione, Caltrans and ACTC plans and long-term goals were compatible. Boyer said a third public meeting will be held in Ione, but the latest preferred plan was selected and recommended by the Ione Planning Commission and placed into the city’s draft General Plan Land Use Element by the Ione City Council. Ione City Planner Christopher Jordan said the city saved about $70,000 dollars on the bypass, including $50,000 by having it included in the General Plan Environmental Impact Report. ACTC Board Member Richard Forster said it was “good to finally see something on paper after 25 years” of talking about an Ione bypass. Among recommendations, Boyer said he thought there should be a separate bicycle and pedestrian bridge built over Sutter Creek, so the existing bridge can be strictly for vehicles. He said parts of the bypass “are essentially modifications and improvements to roads that already exist.” And the segment on Old Stockton Road could eventually be widened, but may not need to be. Some segments, he said, will be tied to developments, including at Castle Oaks and on the Ringer Ranch. Story by Jim Reece
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Last Updated ( Friday, 20 March 2009 )
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