California State Route 174

State Route 174 (SR 174) is a state highway in the U.S. state of California. The two-lane 13-mile (21 km) highway in the western Sierra Nevada, added to the state highway system in 1933, connects Interstate 80 in Colfax with SR 20/SR 49 in Grass Valley, crossing the Bear River next to a 1924 concrete arch bridge. The majority of the route is eligible for the State Scenic Highway System, but local residents have blocked its designation due to property right concerns.Sacramento Bee, Scenic Highway Concept Spurs Alarm, March 25, 1999, p. N1Dave Moller, Union of Grass Valley, CABPRO's Urke steps down , August 7, 2004

Route description Route 174 is defined in section 474, subdivision (a), of the California Streets and Highways Code, and that the highway is "from Route 80 near the City of Colfax to Route 20 near the City of Grass Valley". In addition, subdivision (b) permits the state to relinquish control of the segment in Grass Valley to the city.

State Route 174 begins at exit 135 of I-80 in Colfax. Immediately after crossing I-80, the route turns right on Auburn Street and right again on Central Street, which bypasses downtown; a business route follows Auburn Street, Grass Valley Street, and Main Street through downtown. SR 174 follows the old Lincoln Highway (US 40) north out of downtown to Rollins Lake Road, where the present state highway turns northwest along the Colfax Highway. It then crosses the Bear River from Placer County into Nevada County on a 1987 bridge, with the old 1924 bridge preserved for non-motorized traffic. The land flattens out as SR 174 curves north and west through the Empire Mine State Historic Park into Grass Valley. Turning west on Colfax Avenue, the state highway passes under the SR 20/SR 49 freeway before ending just beyond at Auburn Street, the former surface routing of SR 49.Google Maps street maps and USGS topographic maps, accessed December 2007 via ACME Mapper

SR 174 is not part of the National Highway System, a network of highways that are considered essential to the country's economy, defense, and mobility by the Federal Highway Administration. SR 174 is eligible to be included in the State Scenic Highway System, but it is not officially designated as a scenic highway by the California Department of Transportation.

History The Capital Construction Company began improving the county road between Colfax (on Route 37, signed as US 40) and Grass Valley (on Route 17) under contract on September 29, 1931,Oakland Tribune, Construction Started on Colfax Highway, September 30, 1931 and completed the work by mid-September 1932.Oakland Tribune, Automotive Section, September 18, 1932 The state legislature placed it on the state highway system in 1933 as an extension of the existing Nevada City-Downieville Route 25.: "State Highway Route 37 near Colfax to State Highway Route 17 near Grass Valley.": "Route 25 is from: (a) Route 37 near Colfax to Route 17 near Grass Valley. (b) Nevada City to Route 83 near Sattley via Downieville." In the 1964 renumbering, the highway received a signed designation, State Route 174.: "Route 174 is from Route 80 near Colfax to Route 49 near Grass Valley."

Local residents created the Colfax Highway Association in 1967 at the Peardale firehouse, about halfway between the two ends, in order to preserve the rural nature of the road.Sacramento Bee, Highway Boosters Stay Ahead of Curve, August 17, 1997, p. N1 When the 21-foot (6.5 m) wide 1924 concrete arch bridge that took SR 174 across the Bear River on the county line was set for replacement in the late 1980s, the group successfully lobbied to preserve it for non-motorized traffic.Sacramento Bee, Slated for Razing, Span Gets Reprieve, January 14, 1987, p. B1 The association also pushed for Nevada County's Gold Country Stage bus service to add a route along the highway to Colfax, which was agreed to in late 1998Sacramento Bee, Bus Route to Penetrate Foothills' Last Transitless Corridor, December 10, 1998, p. N1 and still runs as Route 12, connecting downtown Grass Valley with Colfax's Amtrak station.Gold Country Stage, System Map, updated September 2006 After a request by Nevada County in 1988, the state legislature designated the part of SR 174 in unincorporated Nevada County (between the county line and the Grass Valley city limits) as eligible for the State Scenic Highway System in 1991. In 1999, the Colfax Highway Association attempted to get the route officially declared a State Scenic Highway. They argued that the designation would "protect the scenic character and rural flavor of the highway". A newly formed group, Concerned Citizens for 174, opposed the designation because it would restrict the property rights of residents along the highway, for instance requiring them to use "natural colors".Sacramento Bee, Scenic Highway Concept Spurs Alarm, March 25, 1999, p. N1 The opposition was successful, and SR 174 remains eligible for State Scenic Highway status but is not a State Scenic Highway.

Major intersections

Colfax business loop

State Route 174 Business (SR 174 Bus.) is a short, unsigned business route of California State Route 174 in Colfax. It provides access to downtown Colfax as Auburn Street, Grass Valley Street, and Main Street. The business route follows the original routing of US 40.

Major intersections

California State Route 174

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