Canal Drive, long known as Turlock’s bumpiest road, is getting a much-needed makeover this year, which should result in a newly paved, easy to drive, east-west thoroughfare.
Work crews from Atlas Tree Surgery in Santa Rosa, got to work on the renovations on Monday by beginning to remove 52 Carob trees from the Canal Drive median between Geer Road and East Main Street. The city expects the tree removal to be completed by the middle of next week.
“The trees are destroying the roads,” said Nathan Bray, assistant city engineer. “… The roots have grown underneath and broken the pavement.”
While the Carob trees are not diseased, their root structure is responsible for the deterioration of Canal Drive and they must be removed before repairing the road. The left lane of Canal Drive will be closed in each direction until the tree work is finished.
The city plans to plant Crape Myrtle trees, which have a smaller root structure and are expected not to damage a repaired Canal Drive.
The repaving of Canal Drive is anticipated to occur in late August, according to Bray. However, the city is still in the process of working out the details of the repaving project with the California Department of Transportation.
While the work to rehabilitate Canal Drive will take several months before it is all said and done, the end result is expected to be worth the wait, according to city staff.
“It’ll be nice when it’s all done,” Bray said, “but it’s still going through some growing pains right now.”
To contact Alex Cantatore, e-mail acantatore@turlockjournal.com or call 634-9141 ext. 2005.
Work crews from Atlas Tree Surgery in Santa Rosa, got to work on the renovations on Monday by beginning to remove 52 Carob trees from the Canal Drive median between Geer Road and East Main Street. The city expects the tree removal to be completed by the middle of next week.
“The trees are destroying the roads,” said Nathan Bray, assistant city engineer. “… The roots have grown underneath and broken the pavement.”
While the Carob trees are not diseased, their root structure is responsible for the deterioration of Canal Drive and they must be removed before repairing the road. The left lane of Canal Drive will be closed in each direction until the tree work is finished.
The city plans to plant Crape Myrtle trees, which have a smaller root structure and are expected not to damage a repaired Canal Drive.
The repaving of Canal Drive is anticipated to occur in late August, according to Bray. However, the city is still in the process of working out the details of the repaving project with the California Department of Transportation.
While the work to rehabilitate Canal Drive will take several months before it is all said and done, the end result is expected to be worth the wait, according to city staff.
“It’ll be nice when it’s all done,” Bray said, “but it’s still going through some growing pains right now.”
To contact Alex Cantatore, e-mail acantatore@turlockjournal.com or call 634-9141 ext. 2005.
