How many times a week do you make the turn at Business 58? For most of Mojave, State Route 14 is the road for the school run, the gas stop and the drive to work. Caltrans has a plan to rebuild it through the middle of town.
The Mojave Pavement Project is estimated at $60 million. It covers about 21 lane miles of SR 14, from 0.5 miles north of the Silver Queen Road overcrossing to 0.6 miles north of the Business Route 58 intersection. The project carries "pavement" in its name, but the changes you'll feel day to day come in a few specific places: the two junctions where SR 14 meets Business 58, Purdy Avenue, and a sidewalk on the northbound side that will now cross the Union Pacific tracks. Caltrans approved that scope in June 2023. Whether construction starts on time now depends on a milestone scheduled for this month.
Two Business 58 Junctions, Two Different Fixes
Caltrans' environmental study lists four intersections in the project. Three get rebuilt and one gets lights. The two Business 58 junctions get different treatment because each one has a different problem.
| Location | What changes | Caltrans' stated reason |
|---|---|---|
| South junction, SR 14 and Business 58 | Restriped for more turning room. One right-turn lane becomes a left-turn lane, part of the pedestrian island comes out, and the signals are relocated | More room for longer trucks turning right in the northbound lane, and more capacity for growing car and truck traffic on Business 58 |
| North junction, SR 14 and Business 58 | Same footprint. The "free right" is removed, the northbound right turn gets stop control, the median island is fully removed and one signal is relocated | Fewer conflicts with southbound Business 58 drivers turning left onto northbound SR 14, and with bicycles on northbound Business 58 |
| Purdy Avenue | New southbound acceleration lane built into the median, and the median crossover is reconfigured, possibly widened for trucks | Pending development on Purdy Avenue |
| Camelot Boulevard | Intersection lighting on the outside shoulder | Visibility at the intersection |
At the south junction, the plan mostly reworks space that's already there. The study says the work there is "generally" restriping. Even with part of the median island removed and the signals moved, no new right-of-way is needed. In Caltrans' words, the goal is "more capacity for the number of cars lined up to turn." Swapping a right-turn lane for a left-turn lane is how the plan gets that capacity.
The north junction change is the one you'll notice most behind the wheel. Today's free right lets northbound drivers turn without stopping. Under the plan, that movement gets stop control. Caltrans says this removes conflicts with drivers coming off southbound Business 58 and turning left onto northbound SR 14, and with bicycles crossing the intersection on northbound Business 58. The intersection keeps its current shape, but that turn will no longer be a free movement.
Both junction plans rely on striping, island removal, stop control and moving signals that are already there. Caltrans says any signal relocation stays inside its own right-of-way.
A Sidewalk That Crosses the Tracks
The pedestrian work is about continuity. The final environmental document calls for building sidewalk where none exists and rebuilding sidewalk in poor condition, so there's continuous ADA-compliant access along SR 14's northbound shoulder through Mojave. Part of the new sidewalk meets the Union Pacific at-grade crossing and will be built so trains and pedestrians can both use the crossing.
The work is spread out, block by block. Caltrans counts about 19 curb ramps and 15 driveways that don't meet current ADA standards and will be replaced. The project's sidewalk table divides the corridor into short segments. The longest single rebuild of sidewalk and driveways runs 368 linear feet. Others are as short as 43 or 54 feet, and they alternate with stretches marked "no work proposed." So construction on the northbound side will come in short pieces scattered along the highway. Most of the corridor won't be torn up all at once.
The rest of the list covers the road itself. Caltrans plans new bridge railing on the railroad overcrossing bridges, a deck seal on the Oak Creek Road overcrossing, skip rumble strips, drainage improvements, upgraded signs, and upgraded, colorized striping. The pavement work covers rehabilitating, restoring and resurfacing. Caltrans says the goals are a smoother ride, longer pavement life and lower maintenance costs.
May 2027, Then and Now
The environmental review ended in 2023. The draft environmental document went out on April 10, 2023, and Caltrans signed the final one on June 12, 2023. That spring, Caltrans' press release, carried by Sierra Wave, put the estimate at $60 million and said construction was tentatively scheduled to begin in May 2027.
Two years later, a different forecast appeared. In July 2025, Kern Council of Governments' quarterly progress report listed the project at $47,588,000. It showed design 40% complete, with completion expected in September 2026, and gave July 2026 as the expected construction start. July 2026 has passed, and the road hasn't changed. The current Caltrans project page lists the same $60 million and May 2027 figures from 2023, in this tentative sequence:
- November 2026: right-of-way certification
- February 2027: advertise the project to contractors
- April 2027: award the contract
- May 2027: begin construction
The earlier 2025 forecast came and went, and Caltrans' own date is where it was in 2023. Caltrans marks the whole timeline "tentative and subject to change." The right-of-way certification is the step scheduled for this month. The bidding, contract and construction dates all come after it, so it's the milestone to watch.
The 2026 Regional Transportation Improvement Program list from Kern COG files the project under the state's SHOPP highway program, in the design and right-of-way phase, with a 2026/27 program year. That matches the Caltrans page, which puts advertising, award and the construction start in the first half of 2027.
A Quiet Comment Period in 2023
You may not remember any public debate over this project. When Caltrans opened public comment in spring 2023, the notice ran in the Mojave Desert News, and Sierra Wave carried the same press release on April 5, 2023. The comment period ran from April 10 to May 10, 2023. Caltrans held a virtual public meeting on April 25 from 5:30 to 6:30 p.m. and made printed copies available at the Mojave Branch of the Kern County Public Library.
Caltrans received two comments. One came from the California Department of Fish and Wildlife and dealt with regulatory matters. The other was a short note of support from a Mojave resident, submitted through the project website and reprinted in the final environmental document.
In its response, Caltrans said it had selected the Build Alternative, the full set of improvements, and added that the team "will continue with public outreach efforts throughout the life of the project." The study also looked at a No-Build option, which would keep the road as it is. It concluded that this option wouldn't meet the project's purpose and that the pavement would keep deteriorating.
The scope was settled with very little public comment. What's left to track is the schedule.
Following It From Here
Caltrans District 9, based in Bishop, runs the project. The Final Environmental Document is available on request:
- Email: [email protected]
- Phone: (760) 872-0601
- Mail: Caltrans Public Information Office, 500 S. Main Street, Bishop, CA 93514
For construction questions, the project page lists Michael Lingberg, District 9's construction public information officer, at (760) 920-0280 or [email protected]. The same project page is where updated dates will show up. If the November right-of-way milestone holds, the next date is February 2027, when the project goes out for contractor bids.
At Momentum Real Estate Group, we follow projects like this one because a highway rebuild through town affects how Mojave works every day, from the Business 58 turns to the walk along the northbound side. If you own along the SR 14 corridor and want to know how your home stands while the 2027 schedule plays out, get your free home valuation and we'll talk it through with you.
