Mueller Tunnel will be repaired 2012
Back in January 2011, we reported that the Federal Highway Administration (FHA) was seeking public comment on the rebuilding and restoration of the Mt. Lowe Truck Trail adjacent to Mueller Tunnel. We submitted our comments, fully supporting the rebuilding and re-opening of the road, and encouraged CORBA members and other trail users to do the same.
At the November 2011 Angeles National Forest Volunteer Meeting, the Forest service announced that the contract for the repair project has been awarded by the FHA. This is great news for the trail community and for safety, as the Mt. Lowe road is needed for both fire fighting and as an alternative escape route from Mt. Wilson. Mt. Lowe Truck Trail provides mountain bikers and hikers access to the Mt. Lowe trail, Sam Merrill Trail, Idlehour trail, and was a popular shuttle option from Mt. Wilson road. It was originally constructed in 1942. It also provides volunteer trail crews like CORBA’s convenient access to those trails for trailwork.
While the contract has been awarded, the work has not yet been scheduled. Winter weather will dictate when the work can begin, but it is expected to start sometime in the spring. Once completed, the Forest Service expects to re-open the Mt. Lowe fire road. We hope to be riding through the tunnel in Summer 2012.
Tags: Mueller Tunnel
I see they are building a crib wall at the tunnel entrance. Do they have a competion date?
The work is expected to be completed sometime this month. It is much earlier than anticipated, because the weather allowed the road building crews to work almost uninterrupted. At our last meeting with the Forest Service, we learned that the road has to be “signed off” by the engineers and, barring anything out of the ordinary, it could be open as soon as the end of February (though March may be more realistic).
Two Forest Service workers were covering the closure signs at the tunnel today.