The city of Fresno is closing Audubon Drive north of Nees Avenue starting Thursday and it wants drivers planning alternate routes now.

Audubon — a busy, curving street through the bluffs neighborhood — is used by many motorists as a shortcut to and from Woodward Park and north Fresno retail shopping centers.

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“While campaigning for office, residents of the Audubon corridor made it clear to me that they were tired of being ignored by City Hall,” said Mike Karbassi, who represents District 2 on the Fresno City Council.

“I pledged that I would be the councilmember who will change this. They want traffic to slow down and they want to be able to cross the street safely with their kids and grandkids. This continues to be a top priority and we are closer than ever to building out significant improvements in this neighborhood.

“This first project will drastically improve safety, clearing up backed-up traffic on Nees Avenue. It will soon be followed with a traffic signal and crosswalk at Audubon and Del Mar.”

City Hall is encouraging drivers to use Nees Avenue and Friant Road as their primary detour routes.

A Look at the Project

City officials say that if everything goes to plan, Audubon will be closed for four weeks as it undergoes major renovations. These include:

• Adding a second left-turn lane from eastbound Nees onto northbound Audubon.
• Installing Class II bike lanes through the intersection.
• Reconstructing a 200-foot portion of Audubon to accommodate the dual lanes needed for turning traffic and providing a safe distance for vehicles to merge into one travel lane, continuing northeast to Woodward Park.
• Realigning the curved roadway.
• Building a new sidewalk, curb, gutter, and a reduced-width median island.
• Adding slurry seal, striping, and signage. The new striping will add missing bike lane segments along westbound Nees.