South Lake Tahoe Detour Brings Boost In Sales For Businesses Along Alternate Route

EL DORADO (CBS13) — With Highway 50 shut down for two weeks for bridge repair, new detours are bringing more traffic to places that wouldn't normally see as many people.

A marketing company is even promoting local tourism to help with the economic challenges many businesses have been dealing with.

"The influx in traffic comes money, more money leads to more upgrades and bettering of the local community here," KC Sare, Owner of Solid Ground Brewing.

The detour to get to South Lake Tahoe is already bringing in new faces.

"Our original plan was to take it back over 50 over Echo Summit and down that way, but it's closed so this is just as beautiful," said Sherry Ashby.

"We want to be able to have enough business that we get new business that comes in," said Dean Hiatt, Executive Chef at Poor Red's.

READ MORE: Two-Week Closure Of Highway 50 Over Echo Summit Starts Friday Morning

Sagent Marketing is encouraging people to take advantage of the detour by exploring businesses and historic sites along the way.

"Maybe some new customers new people to come their way and to remember them so they will come back sometime," said Shelley Cousineau, Vice President-Client Services and Media, Sagent Marketing.

The detour if your heading from Sacramento has you turn onto Highway 49 up 88 and 89 to get to South Lake Tahoe.

For people like Rose Wilson who's seeing new customers, she's ready for more business to come.

"I'm sure that's going to increase over the weekend and over the next two weeks that the road is going to be closed," she said.

For more information on the detour, go to their website: https://www.way2tahoe.com/