| Date: | Friday, July 21, 2023 |
| District: | 05 – Santa Barbara, San Luis Obispo, Monterey, San Benito, and Santa Cruz Counties |
| Contact: | Jim Shivers or Alexa Bertola |
| Phone: | (805) 549-3237 |
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE BIG SUR RIVER SLOPE REPAIR ALONG HIGHWAY 1 TO RESULT IN24/7 TRAFFIC CONTROL STARTING MONDAY JULY 24 MONTEREY COUNTY – A Big Sur River slope reconstruction project along Highway 1 will begin Monday July 24 and result in 24/7 signalized traffic control. This emergency project will make repairs to the slope and prevent future scouring of the embankment supporting Highway 1 at Post Mile 47.3, just north of the main entrance to Pfeiffer Big Sur State Park and just south of the Fernwood Campground. Starting Monday July 24, travelers will encounter signalized one-way reversing traffic control at this location 24/7. Construction activities will take place seven days a week, from 6:00 am to 10:00 pm. Travelers can expect delays of 10 minutes. The project will stabilize the slope which is being eroded by high flows along the Big Sur River. Slope repairs of this nature require that work take place at the present time to take advantage of lower water flows during summer months. This repair project is expected to be completed September 30, 2023. Road information and updates can also be found on Caltrans District 5 Social Media platforms: Twitter at: @CaltransD5, Facebook at: Caltrans Central Coast (District 5) and Instagram at: Caltrans_D5. Our crews deserve to get home safely too.Drive slowly and carefully in work zones. CHP Traffic Incident Information Page: http://cad.chp.ca.govTraveler information at: https://quickmap.dot.ca.gov/
The apparent location of the scouring may have been caused by a “log” jam, as can be seen here: https://www.google.com/maps/place/Fernwood+Campground+and+Resort/@36.2591547,-121.7890486,62m/data=!3m1!1e3!4m9!3m8!1s0x808d855ed530d5df:0xa96ada5a50fb9cfe!5m2!4m1!1i2!8m2!3d36.2608064!4d-121.7932361!16s%2Fg%2F1w0r03_z?entry=ttu
A culvert outlet nearby might also contribute: https://www.google.com/maps/@36.2595789,-121.7892435,3a,30y,173.74h,67.53t/data=!3m7!1e1!3m5!1sy7N6x2_oA5GHNqL1izO4ZQ!2e0!5s20220901T000000!7i16384!8i8192?entry=ttu
It appears that the majority of mass-wasting incidents are on embankments (fills with unconsolidated material, which is highly susceptible to displacement).
Yes, I posted photos of the log jam. This exact location was also undercut during a prior bad winter — 2017, perhaps?
This location has been noticably undermined for at least 5 years. I guess waiting for it to become an “emergency” helps cut through the red tape. It’s where the river takes a sharp turn, flowing north until up against the road, then bouncing off the road embankment & continuing west. When at the location, it appears the river’s route used to be many meters away from the road (to the south/west) & the curve was less dramatic, but over time its route has changed as rivers are wont to do. With Fernwood & Pfeiffer occupying the flatter land on the S/W side, it’s a steep, tight spot for the road to thread through. I hope they can protect the river from the effects of this construction; I expect a lot of sediment will end up being dumped into the river.
A lot longer than five years, but yes, it started becoming pronounced about 6 years ago, I think it was, during the El Niño of 2017. An emergency repair was made back then. I’ll have to go back in my blog and look this up.