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There are no additional design criteria or conservation measures for BLM sensitive species. <br />2.4.6 Transportation <br />The two major transportation corridors in the vicinity of the proposed project area are US <br />Highway 160 (east to west) and US Highway 550 (north to south). Access to the gravel mine <br />area is directly from US Highway 160 to the access road for C and J. C and J has an existing <br />highway access permit for the facility (permit number 382022 received April 1982), and would <br />continue to utilize the permit under the Proposed Action. The current permit allows for C and J <br />truck traffic to turn either right or left entering or exiting the access road to the site. On US <br />Highway 160, there is a left turn deceleration lane for entrance to the access road and there is a <br />right turn acceleration lane upon exiting the access road. <br />Access to the proposed mine area will consist of a permanent easement over private property <br />access road and through the active mine area. This access road is gated and locked on the <br />weekends. Although the Proposed Action is referred to as an expansion of the gravel pit, the <br />expansion refers to an increase of the area of the BLM land to be mined versus an expansion of <br />the mine's daily volume of operations. The level of current operations consists of an average of <br />134 trips per day by gravel trucks leaving and returning to the property. Daily numbers range <br />from approximately 100 trips in the winter to 200 trips in the summer. If demand were to <br />increase, the number of trips could also increase. <br />The majority of the gravel trucks that enter and exit the site are operated by independent <br />contractors that pick up gravel for construction sites. Drivers of these trucks are responsible for <br />ensuring that their loads are of a legal weight when entering the highway. The trucks are <br />weighed on an electronic scale, operated by certified scale operators, to verify the weight of <br />gravel in the truck. The truck operators are responsible ensuring that the gravel trucks are not <br />overweight when entering the highway. The truck drivers are provided a certified scale ticket. <br />The tickets provide proof that the trucks are not overweight when leaving the site. Overweight <br />trucks can impact road beds by causing deterioration quicker than their design. <br />The truck driver is also responsible for securing loads (typically by placing a tarp over the <br />gravel) is that of the independent contractor/truck driver, the operator provides both signage to <br />remind drivers to secure their loads and provides an area specifically for securing loads before <br />the trucks leave the site. Securing loads is the primary method of keeping the gravel from falling <br />into roadways. To further avoid gravel from reaching Highway 160, the operator uses a sweeper <br />on the access road on an as needed basis to clean up any spilled gravel. <br />There are no public roads within the BLM sections of the proposed project area. There are <br />existing oil and gas field access roads on Grandview Ridge that provide access to BLM lands for <br />mineral development activities. These roads are gated and locked and do not provide public <br />access to the Grandview Ridge area. <br />Gravel trucks enter and leave US 160 at relatively slower speeds than most traffic travellin on the <br />highway. A deceleration and acceleration lanes were constructed on US 160 to allow gravel <br />trucks to enter and leave the pit access road to minimize any obstruction to through-going traffic. <br />Grandview Gravel Pit Expansion Environmental Assessment 34