Ask TBC: Why is upkeep worse on Highways 178 and 58?
| Sunday, Feb 14 2010 12:00 PM
Last Updated Sunday, Feb 14 2010 12:00 PM
Q: Every morning when I get on Highway 178 at Oswell heading downtown, the volume of debris and trash strewn along the freeway and particularly the "V"-shaped areas around the on-ramps make me think I'm at the landfill, not on a freeway.
What agency (or agencies) is/are responsible for keeping 178 clean? Is there a schedule for cleanup? Are some portions attended to more often than others?
Both 178 and 58 (particularly between Fairfax and Mount Vernon) are strewn with every sort of trash. By contrast, Highway 99, which is more heavily traveled, seems in relatively better shape.
I know Bakersfield needs some litter control "consciousness-raising" but I also know that people tend to keep clean areas clean but think little of adding more litter to an already fouled nest.
-- D. Campbell
A: Caltrans spokeswoman Holly Vogel took this one:
Caltrans has the task of cleaning up materials and trash deposited on Highways 99, 58, 178, 204 and 184 in the Bakersfield area. That said, Highway 99 has a dedicated inmate crew for litter and weed control, Highways 58 and 178 and at times 204 share a similar crew on a weekly rotation (as close as possible). A third inmate crew is on a weekly rotation to work on other Kern County highways including 184, 223, 33, 43, 166, Interstate 5 and sometimes the Buttonwillow roadside rest area.
As a result of the concerned citizen who wrote to The Californian, Caltrans maintenance will be monitoring to see if we have special-needs areas on one or more of our state highways. Please remind readers that the Kern County landfill is east of town on Highway 58 and all of the trucks hauling debris -- city, county or other -- use it. Also advise citizens hauling debris to landfills to secure their loads so they don't become airborne.
Q: I am curious about the piece of land with what looks like a rock waterfall in the City in the Hills. Is this piece of land going to be a park? And when?
-- Lyn Espericueta
A: Steve Teglia, an administrative analyst in the Bakersfield city manager's office, said:
The city has been working diligently with the Master Home Owners Association for City in the Hills on a number of community issues, including a plan for the West Park. The city, with concurrence from the MHOA, is in the process of finalizing a design for the West Park that will include utilizing as much of the existing rock feature as possible (it will be a dry feature, not a waterfall), and which will be mutually acceptable to both the MHOA and the city. This plan will be finalized over the next couple weeks and it is the city's intention to present this plan to the MHOA prior to any work commencing.
Ask The Californian appears on Mondays and Thursdays. Submit questions to asktbc@bakersfield.com or to The Bakersfield Californian, c/o Christine Bedell, P.O. Bin 440, Bakersfield, CA 93302.
