Avenue 48 Widening Project to Begin After Festivals
April 11, 2024
CARVER TRACT – A half-mile segment of Avenue 48, from Van Buren Street to Dillon Road, will go from two lanes to four lanes and get a sidewalk and bike lane in a project that will start after the Coachella and Stagecoach festivals.
The project spans portions of the Cities of Coachella and Indio, and the county unincorporated community of Carver Tract. Avenue 48 is a high-traffic corridor for local residents as well as for many visitors who come to the area for the festivals. By widening this stretch, the project will help improve traffic and also provide a convenient option for walking or biking.
The project also gets Avenue 48 ready for the Arts and Music Line, an upcoming project that will transform the entire corridor with nearly 10 miles of walking and biking facilities and local art. It will be an active transportation path connecting three cities, La Quinta, Indio, and Coachella, as well as Carver Tract.
The Riverside County Board of Supervisors on Tuesday awarded the construction contract for the Avenue 48 Widening Project to Granite Construction Company of Indio.
“Widening Avenue 48 is a very important effort for the community of Carver Tract, the residential communities in Coachella and Indio and the Coachella Valley as a whole,” said Supervisor V. Manuel Perez. “It is important for improving traffic, promoting opportunities to bike or walk with safe paths of travel, improving air quality and reducing greenhouse gases, and important to our growing economic development and tourism efforts. I’m glad that residents will see this intersection improve dramatically and be part of the overall improvements to the whole corridor with the Arts and Music Line.”
Work on the widening between Van Buren Street and Dillon Road is scheduled to begin in early summer 2024. The work will be phased to keep the road open during construction as much as possible and will take approximately four months to complete.
“This transportation project is major for the City of Coachella,” said Coachella Mayor Steven Hernandez. “It sets the stage for huge improvements and investment that will transform Avenue 48 by making it pedestrian friendly. We look forward to this project getting started after the festival season and the Arts and Music Line to come in next.”
The total cost of the project, including design, right of way, and construction, is over $4.5 million. The work is funded by the Coachella Valley Association of Governments, Riverside County, the Cities of Coachella and Indio, and Valley Sanitary District funds.
“As we witness not only the City of Indio’s continued growth but the greater Coachella Valley, it’s essential that we ensure our infrastructure keeps pace with this progress,” said City of Indio Mayor Lupe Ramos Amith. “The widening of Avenue 48 is a testament to the commitment of enhancing the quality of life for both residents and visitors alike and we are very appreciative of the work of the Riverside County Board of Supervisors and Supervisor V. Manuel Perez for their continued support on these important projects.”
For more information, visit the Riverside County Transportation Department Web page on the project at https://rcprojects.org/ave48.
###
Supervisor V. Manuel Perez represents the Fourth Supervisorial District on the Riverside County Board of Supervisors. The largest district in the county by geography, the 4th District covers eastern Riverside County, from Whitewater, stretching across the entire Coachella Valley south to the Salton Sea, up Highway 74 to Idyllwild and the mountain communities, and heading east of the Coachella Valley to Blythe and the Colorado River.
Supervisor Perez’s office hours are 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. Monday through Friday.
