Lassen Boosts Sierra Route
February 4th, 1952
“The All-Weather, All-Year Highway” is the name adopted here for the California State Highway 36, connecting Susanville across the Sierra with Red Bluff.
Reason for the new nickname emphasizing the year-round virtues of Highway 36 is the experience of the recent great storm, President Sherman Rea of the Susanville Chamber of Commerce, explained.
Caravans of huge transport trucks were routed across the mountains on Highway 36 for several weeks during and following the storm. The Susanville-Red Bluff highway, which has low grades and no slide areas, was exclusively open.
Echo Summit, Donner Summit and the Feather River Canyon roads were and still are in some cases, closed by high snow or slides. The Susanville-Red Bluff highway was closed only about a day.
The Southern Pacific through Susanville was the only rail line open across the mountains for some time. The division point at Wendel, just above Susanville, was so busy handling the extra trains that a Pullman was brought in to house extra railroad crews.
The Lions Club of Chester, also on Highway 36, is taking the emphasis on the importance of the road to seek improvements of the route. The Lions Club is recruiting support for the elimination of the worst curves on the comparatively high-speed mountain highway. President Rea of the Susanville Chamber of Commerce promised cooperation in the drive for improvement.
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