What is the Project?
In order to improve operations and safety on State Route 99 from State Route 32 to East First Avenue, the Butte County Association of Governments (BCAG) and the City of Chico requested the California Department of Transportation (Caltrans) to complete a Project Study Report (PSR) in November of 2000 investigating alternatives for constructing a number of improvements on State Route (SR) 99 and East First Avenue in the City of Chico.  Improved operations and safety together with reduced congestion are the goals of the proposed project.
 
Proposed operational and safety improvements would primarily consist of adding northbound (NB) and southbound (SB) auxiliary lanes on SR 99 between SR 32 and East 1st Avenue interchanges, the widening of SR 32 on and off ramps and East 1st Avenue on and off ramps.   Included in the widening for the East 1st Avenue NB off ramp would be the provision for dual left turn lanes to facilitate the turning movements of existing northbound traffic to westbound traffic on East 1st Avenue and the widening of East First Avenue.

In November of 2001, BCAG took the lead to develop the environmental document and begin the process of completing the first phase of this project which is the Project Approval and Environmental Document (PA&ED) phase.

Why is the Project being done?
The necessity of this project is driven by operational and safety considerations.  As much of the local public is aware, this short section of roadway is subject to delays and difficult merging and weaving conditions during the AM and PM peak hours.  It is also host to accidents ranging from minor collisions to resultant fatalities.

The California Highway Patrol office on 995 Fir Street was contacted in early September of 2001 with the intention of getting a general idea of the number of accidents occurring on this stretch of roadway.  For a reporting period of January 1, 2000 – July 31, 2001, this office had processed 1113 accidents throughout their entire jurisdictional patrol area.  The area generally encompasses and includes the following:

     State Highway 99 from Tehama County to State Highway 149
     Route 191 from the Paradise Town Limits to State Highway 70
     State Route 32 from the Sacramento River to Forest Ranch
     Pentz Road from the Paradise Town Limits to State Highway 70
     The Skyway to Butte Creek
     All roads west of State Highway 99 to the Sacramento River

299 of all 1113 reported accidents in the Chico office’s jurisdiction occurred on State Highway 99.  95 of those 299 accidents (31.8%) were on the stretch of roadway being addressed by this project.

What is the current status of the Project? The Environmental Impact Report was approved by the BCAG Board of Directors in January of 2004 and selected the inside widening alternative together with signalized ramp intersections at East First Avenue.  This completes the California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA).  The National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) was completed in December of 2004 with the final approval of the Categorical Exclusion and signature of the Project Report.