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Morgan Lake Road Safety Improvements

Welcome!

We are currently designing a project to improve safety on Morgan Lake Road
in La Grande. 

You can learn more about this project by visiting each station in the open house.

At the end, you will find out how to contact us and submit comments or questions.

Thank you for visiting. This project open house closes Friday, June 30 at 5:00 p.m.

You may go directly to a station by using the buttons below, or click the Get Started: Project Background button at the top of the screen to move through the stations in order.

Stations

Learn more about why this project is needed.
Find out what we have planned for improving safety on Morgan Lake Road and how this project may affect you.
We want to hear from you. Submit comments and questions here.

Project Background

Morgan Lake Road serves residents and provides the only public access to Morgan Lake. There are a number of safety concerns that we will address to make this road safer.

This two-mile gravel road is narrow and steep.
Drivers cannot see oncoming traffic at some curves because of steep banks.
Some sections of road have no guardrail.
Drainage issues can create icy spots during winter.

Project Overview:

To improve safety on Morgan Lake Road, we will:

  • Widen the road.
  • Remove steep roadside banks on corners.
  • Install new guardrail and replace old guardrail.
  • Improve drainage.

Purpose and Need:

The primary purpose for this project is to improve safety and reduce the chances for vehicles to leave the roadway.

This segment of road has experienced three off-road crashes from 2014-2015, including one fatal crash.
There have also been numerous crashes involving single car slide-offs during winter.


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  • This section of guardrail will be replaced.

    This section of guardrail will be replaced.

  • A spring causes icy conditions in winter.

    A spring causes icy conditions in winter.


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Project Details

In this station, we will introduce you to project details and potential impacts during construction.

  • Location.
  • Project scope.
  • Schedule.
  • Project cost.
  • Potential traffic impacts.

Location:Map of Morgan Lake Road Safety Improvements project.

The project includes the bottom half of Morgan Lake Road, from Skyline Lane to just uphill from Marvin Lane, mileposts 0.30 to 1.20. Union County owns and maintains the road.

Project scope:

When finished, travelers on Morgan Lake Road will see the following improvements:

Wider road.
We will widen the road is some sections to give vehicles more room to pass.

Steep road banks removed.
Some corners have steep banks that make seeing oncoming traffic difficult. By cutting these back, the line of sight will open.

New guardrail.
Some sections of road have no guardrail. There is nothing to stop vehicles from leaving the road. Adding new guardrail to these sections and replacing old guardrail will help keep vehicles on the road.

Improved drainage.
Improving draining will remove icy spots that might contribute to a crash.

Schedule:

Project design is underway and will be completed by summer 2023.

Project is scheduled to go to bid in September 2023.

Construction is scheduled for 2024.

Project cost:

The project cost is estimated at $1.8 million. This includes engineering and construction.

Potential traffic impacts:

We will not know the exact impacts until we get closer to construction. However, we do anticipate travelers on Morgan Lake Road will see the following:

  • Access for locals and Morgan Lake users will remain open.
  • Construction activities will include heavy equipment and workers in the roadway.
  • Flaggers.
  • Lane closures.
  • Delays up to 20 minutes.

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  • The bank on the right will be cut back to improve line of sight.

    The bank on the right will be cut back to improve line of sight.

  • This section of guardrail will be replaced and new guardrail will extend down the hill.

    This section of guardrail will be replaced and new guardrail will extend down the hill.

  • Guardrail will be replaced.

    Guardrail will be replaced.

  • The bank on the left will be cut back to open line of sight.

    The bank on the left will be cut back to open line of sight.


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Stay Involved

Thank you for taking the time to visit this open house.

We want to hear from you. If you have any questions or comments, please let us know.
You can contact us by phone or email, sign up for project updates and take a short survey below.
Your feedback may help shape the final design package for this project.

Contact us:

For more information about this project, please visit the project webpage or contact:Click here to go to the Morgan Lake Road project webpage.

Erin Winterton
Transportation Project Manager
541-963-1371
Erin.Winterton@odot.oregon.gov

Vicki Moles
Community Affairs Specialist
541-620-4527
Vicki.l.moles@odot.oregon.gov

Sign up:

Sign up to receive Northeast Oregon news releases (Morrow, Umatilla, Wallowa, Union and Baker Counties) and stay up-to-date on this and other projects in northeast Oregon.

Take our survey:

Please use this survey to let us know if you have any questions about this project. We would also like to know how you found out about the open house.


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