Current:Home > InvestCalifornia’s scenic Highway 1 to Big Sur opens to around-the-clock travel as slide repair advances-DB Wealth Institute B2 Reviews & Ratings
California’s scenic Highway 1 to Big Sur opens to around-the-clock travel as slide repair advances
lotradecoin trading View Date:2024-12-26 03:32:27
BIG SUR, Calif. (AP) — A section of California’s scenic Highway 1 leading to the famous Big Sur coast reopened to around-the-clock traffic Friday after stabilization of a storm-triggered rockslide that dropped a chunk of one lane into the ocean and hampered tourism.
The gap has yet to be closed, but after placement of steel and concrete into the cliff, a temporary signal system was activated to allow alternating north-south traffic on the undamaged lane, according to the California Department of Transportation.
The reopening came eight days ahead of schedule and just in time for summer travel.
“Highway 1 is the jewel of the California highway system and our crews have been working non-stop for the last month and a half so Californians can have unrestricted access to this iconic area of our state,” Caltrans Director Tony Tavares said in a statement this week.
Big Sur is a 90-mile (145-kilometer) stretch of the state’s central coast where misty, forested mountains rise up from the ocean. Much of the highway is perched high on cliffs, presenting dramatic views.
Highway 1 is normally a must for California visitors traveling between Los Angeles and San Francisco, but the approach to Big Sur from the south has long been blocked by previous landslides requiring massive repairs, leaving the approach from the north as the area’s lifeline.
After heavy rains, a rockslide south of Monterey on March 30 caused about 6 feet (nearly 2 meters) of the southbound lane and a retaining wall that supported the highway to fall about 170 feet (52 meters) to the ocean below.
Caltrans determined the other lane was usable, but traffic was limited to twice-daily convoys in and out of Big Sur. Initially, only residents and essential workers were allowed to join the convoys. A crane had to be removed each time to make room for the convoys, said Kevin Drabinski, a Caltrans spokesperson.
In April, Kirk Gafill, president of the Big Sur Chamber of Commerce, told the San Francisco Chronicle that total losses to Big Sur businesses since the slide were exceeding $1 million a day.
A permanent repair to the highway is being designed and is expected to be completed in spring 2025, Caltrans said.
veryGood! (673)
Related
- White House says deals struck to cut prices of popular Medicare drugs that cost $50 billion yearly
- An Aaron Rodgers return this season would only hurt the Jets
- University of North Carolina shooting suspect found unfit for trial, sent to mental health facility
- 8 officers who fatally shot Jayland Walker cleared by internal police investigation
- Red Cross blood inventory plummets 25% in July, impacted by heat and record low donations
- Blinken seeks a new extension of the Gaza cease-fire as he heads again to the Middle East
- GOP impeachment effort against Philadelphia prosecutor lands before Democratic-majority court
- WWE Hall of Famer Tammy ‘Sunny’ Sytch sentenced to 17 years in prison for fatal DUI crash
- Judge tells Google to brace for shakeup of Android app store as punishment for running a monopoly
- Myanmar and China conduct naval drills together as fighting surges in border area
Ranking
- 'RuPaul's Drag Race Global All Stars': Premiere date, cast, where to watch and stream
- US military Osprey aircraft with 8 aboard crashes into the sea off southern Japan
- Antonio Gates, Julius Peppers among semifinalists for 2024 Pro Football Hall of Fame class
- Chicago Blackhawks move to cut veteran Corey Perry for engaging in 'unacceptable' conduct
- NASA still hasn't decided the best way to get the Starliner crew home: 'We've got time'
- Michigan man accused of keeping dead wife in freezer sentenced to up to 8 years in prison
- Sandy Hook families offer to settle Alex Jones' $1.5 billion legal debt for at least $85 million
- India tunnel collapse rescue effort turns to rat miners with 41 workers still stuck after 16 days
Recommendation
-
Meta kills off misinformation tracking tool CrowdTangle despite pleas from researchers, journalists
-
Niall Horan stunned by Super Save singer AZÁN on 'The Voice': 'She could really be a threat'
-
Five journalists were shot in one day in Mexico, officials confirm
-
3 dead, 1 hospitalized in explosion that sparked massive fire at Ohio auto repair shop
-
Jim Harbaugh wants to hire Colin Kaepernick to Chargers' coaching staff. Will the QB bite?
-
Christmas 2023 shipping deadlines: What you need to know about USPS, UPS, FedEx times.
-
Gay couple in Nepal becomes the 1st to officially register same-sex marriage in the country
-
Court says prosecutor can’t use statements from teen in school threat case