Poplar’s Avenue 145 Pedestrian Project Targets Missing Sidewalks and Safer School Routes

POPLAR, Calif. — A pedestrian safety project focused on Avenue 145 between Road 190 and Road 193 could change how residents walk through Poplar, especially near schools and frequently traveled local routes.

The Tulare County Resource Management Agency’s August 2026 newsletter announced September community engagement concerning proposed pedestrian improvements in Poplar and Orosi. Those are two separate community projects; the Orosi design meeting should not be described as a Poplar project decision.

What is planned in Poplar?

The regional transportation improvement plan identifies the Poplar Pedestrian Connectivity Project as pedestrian and safety work along Avenue 145 between Roads 190 and 193. Proposed features include sidewalk links and other street-level improvements intended to help residents travel without having to walk in the road.

For people who walk to class, work or nearby services, a continuous pedestrian connection can be as important as road pavement. The county’s broader street-safety work also considers drainage, lighting, curb access and crossing visibility.

What is approved and what is not?

Inclusion in a transportation plan and an invitation to public meetings do not prove that a contractor has finished sidewalks in Poplar. Final alignment, funding, right-of-way needs and construction timing should be confirmed with the county’s most recent project documents.

Property owners should ask whether driveways, roadside drainage and access near their addresses would change. The most useful next information for residents is an updated design drawing and a construction schedule.

Where to follow it

Check Tulare County RMA news and contact the agency at 559-624-7000 for public works project details. Report existing road or pedestrian hazards to the appropriate county department without assuming proposed improvements are already in place.

Illustrative photograph: Keisha Riley Lemons / Unsplash. A rural road; not the proposed Avenue 145 project in Poplar.

Sources: Tulare County RMA, August 2026 newsletter; Tulare County Association of Governments, adopted transportation project listing.

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