TRAFFIC

Driving in downtown Palm Springs? Indian Canyon conversion underway, causes lane closures

Colin Atagi
Palm Springs Desert Sun

The first significant wave of lane closures related to the project converting Indian Canyon Drive in Palm Springs from one-way to two-way traffic began Tuesday morning.

Palm trees are being removed this week from median islands on Indian Canyon at Alejo Road from 7 a.m. to 4 p.m. through Friday, the city said. 

Alejo is between Granvia Valmonte to the north and Amado Road to the south. It separates Indian Canyon's two-way section to the north and one-way section to the south.

The 1-mile southern stretch downtown is being converted into a two-way road between Alejo and Camino Parocela.

Palm Springs resident Rebecca Marsh, 50, while shopping downtown that she was glad to finally see work being done, even though it's creating a traffic delay.

"I want to get this project finished. I think it'll ease traffic on Palm Canyon," Marsh said of the main business strip parallel to Indian Canyon. "More cars on Indian will make it easier to walk around on Palm Canyon."

Work has begun on Indian Canyon Drive between Granvia Valmonte and Alejo Road. Palm trees are being cut down in the median to allow for two-way traffic.

Here are some useful detours

This week, Indian Canyon's left northbound lane will be closed between Amado and Granvia Valmonte, which are separated by just under a half-mile. The right lane will be open, but anyone who wants to avoid delays should use Avenida Caballeros or Sunrise Way to the east.

Southbound traffic will be detoured onto Granvia Valmonte, which is directly north of Alejo. From there, they can turn left onto Palm Canyon Drive and continue south.

Northbound traffic will only be allowed to turn left onto Alejo while work takes place north of the intersection. Turns will be prohibited once work begins on the south side of the intersection and northbound traffic will need to use Amado for left turns to Palm Canyon.

Sunline Transit Agency's Line 25 bus stop is south of Alejo, but it will be moved to the north side of the intersection while work continues through summer.

A double-edged sword — delays, then relief

As the morning rush hour drew to a close on Tuesday, residents said they supported the project but lamented delays that could arise from lane closures.

"I was fine until I got stuck behind someone who got confused by the detour and held up traffic," Desert Hot Springs resident Sam Laine, 60, said as he sipped tea at Koffi at Alejo and Palm Canyon. "They were expecting to turn onto Alejo but probably got confused about turning sooner (onto Granvia Valmonte)."

Two northbound lanes are being removed from Indian Canyon. One will be used for southbound traffic and the other will be converted into a center turning lane.

This diagram illustrates the final design for Indian Canyon Drive following a conversion project that's scheduled to last through Fall.

Roadside parking will remain, sidewalks will be adjusted and all traffic signals will be renovated or replaced. That includes signals as far north as Tachevah Drive so traffic flow can remain steady.

There are about nine intersections within the construction zone, plus even more driveways.

Lane closures are mostly expected during the day and all should be back to normal once workers head home in the evening. Trenching work will cause rolling closures between Camino Parocella and Baristo Road through next week, but officials don't expect them to significantly affect traffic.

The project will cost about $5.5 million and funding is coming from several sources, including the Coachella Valley Association of Governments and Measure J funds.

What's happening? The Indian Canyon Drive conversion in a nutshell

Round and round:An unusual roundabout was almost part of the Indian Canyon conversion

Palm Desert roads:Here's the Palm Desert road work scheduled for the rest of 2019

Indio efforts:Indio improvement project focuses on four roads

Desert Sun reporter Colin Atagi covers crime, public safety and road and highway safety. He can be reached at Colin.Atagi@desertsun.com or follow him at @tdscolinatagi.