– Press release from Caltrans
BISHOP – The California Department of Transportation (Caltrans) would like to inform the traveling public that State Route 168 will have intermittent two hour closures, up to four times a day due to the Cal Tech telescope relocation project.
The highway will be closed due to accommodate the oversized load of the telescopes that are being moved from Cedar Flat to Big Pine Wednesday, June 17 to Friday, July 10. The closures will be intermittent and will last approximately two hours starting at 6:00 am until 3:30 pm.
The traveling public should expect up to two hour delays today while traveling along State Route 168. Use an alternate route if possible.
For the latest in highway information please visit Caltrans QuickMap site at quickmap.dot.ca.gov or call our Road Condition Hotline at 1-800-427-ROAD (7623).
###
For the safety of workers and other motorists, please be Work Zone Alert and Move Over where possible.
Discover more from Sierra Wave: Eastern Sierra News - The Community's News
Subscribe to get the latest posts sent to your email.
It is my understanding that the radio telescopes are being mothballed. Since CARMA is being shut down, all of their equipment will be removed from Cedar Flat and the site restored to something like its appearance before the array was installed around 2000.
While I realize CalTech needs to move these enormous things, they’ve left a lot of folks inconvenienced simply because they failed to announce this until it was happening. Now that it is happening, why can’t they actually schedule the closures so people have an opportunity to avoid them? “Use an alternate route” isn’t going to work for a road like 168.
If that is true, there is a story here. Why would the CalTech spend millions of dollars building the CARMA site, only to tear it down so soon. Was it financial issues?
I understand the radio telescopes need complete darkness to operate efficiently, and the Westguard Pass area seemed suitable. I’m hoping Caltech will offer a press release sometime this summer.
CARMA had a good run, but other facilities have overtaken it in its capabilities. Cal Tech has
the following site summarizing CARMA’s accomplishments.
http://www.caltech.edu/news/celebrating-11-years-carma-discoveries-46940
The press release doesn’t say what days the closures will take place.
(Note: Story has been updated.)
The interesting thing to me is why and what is being moved. You left out an important part of the story.
(Note: Working on it, Ken.)