Coachella Valley Association of Governments to Apply for N Indian Canyon Dr Bridge State Grant

"That should be a priority," Tower Market Employee Ladonna Mosley shared. " I know people that have gotten into wrecks over there." Wind, sand and flooding close roads nearly 28 days a year on average. These road closures cause backups for Palm Springs, its neighboring desert cities and anyone else who has business to conduct in the Palm Springs area. "Well, for me, I work two jobs and have to go all the way around the city," Mosley continued. "Sometimes I can’t even make it in because the traffic is so bad. I won’t even make enough money to get there as much as I’ll put it in gas, to be honest, so it defeats the purpose. That’s taking money out of my kids mouths." But now, the Coachella Valley Association of Governments (CVAG) and every city in the desert are teaming up to address this decades-long issue: building a bridge on North Indian Canyon Dr. "This is one of the most critical projects in the Coachella Valley," Palm Springs City Councilmember Lisa Middleton explained. "This is a competitive grant that came out of the State Transportation Agency and it’s for projects that are $50 million or less. Because Indian Canyon’s the primary connection to the hospital, we’ve prioritize getting Indian Canyon completed first but we have not forgotten about Gene Autry." If granted, it would stop these constant road closures through its special design to allow sand to circulate under the bridge and elevate drivers above the flood zone. "We’ve got an opportunity to make this project a little more exciting if we can include a dedicated stretch for bicycles and pedestrians to be able to go across," Middleton said. But more importantly, it would get patients to hospitals much faster. "If you live north of Interstate 10 and Indian Canyon and Gene Autry are closed and you need to get to Desert Regional Hospital, your travel time can triple," Middletion explained. "That can be the difference between life and death so this is very, very serious." CVAG is asking the community to let them know your priorities for the bridge through a survey which will be included in the proposal to the state. The survey deadline is July 5th with the application deadline on July 31st. If you’d like to complete the survey, click here.