Caltrans report on Rocky Creek Slipout

HIGHWAY 1 CLOSED AT PALO COLORADO DUE TO SLIP OUT

MONTEREY COUNTY – Highway 1 is closed at Palo Colorado due to a slip south of the Rocky Creek Bridge.  This slip-out has resulted in a loss of the southbound lanes and is encroaching upon the northbound lanes.

Due to this slip out which occurred this afternoon, Highway 1 is now closed from the north at Palo Colorado (PM 65) to just south of Limekiln State Park (PM 20.95).  Caltrans engineers are assessing the site before dark and will continue this assessment a first light tomorrow morning.

PREVIOUS SLIDE UPDATE 3/29/24:

Crews continue to work around rain events in making repairs at the Dolan Point Slide at Post Mile 29.5 and at Paul’s Slide at PM 22. At Dolan Point, crews continue to bring slide material down from the slope above the roadway. Once that work is completed, a permanent cable net drapery system will be installed on the face of the slope. Repairs at Dolan Point are expected to be completed on May 1. At Paul’s Slide crews are working to reopen the roadway by late spring as weather and slide activity continue to impact repair progress at the site.

A final repair design has been completed for the Regent’s Slide at PM 27.8. Surveys of the site indicate that the amount of material that will need to be brought down is in the range of 300,000 cubic yards. By comparison, slides in the winter of 2023 at Dani Creek, Gilbert’s, and Mill Creek, averaged in the range of 30,000 cubic yards.

Initial estimates indicate that once work begins at Regent’s Slide it will take 100 working days to complete the repairs and open the highway.

There are environmental, weather, and other site-specific considerations which will factor into the starting date for the repair operation at Regent’s. Repair work at Regent’s Slide cannot begin until all environmental clearances have been received from the relevant resource agencies. At present, these environmental clearances are expected to be received within 30 days. 

Next week crews will begin to create a path to the top of the slide in order to stage machinery. The steepness of the slope and the limited access to the site will make it challenging to mobilize equipment in and out of the project area. Once bulldozers begin at the top of the slide, they will progress down to roadway level. In the interest of safety and in order to foster efficient productivity, drier conditions at the site will be needed before full repair production can begin.

In the later phases of the repair, once the slide removal reaches the level of the highway, crews will be able to determine if the roadway itself is damaged. Surveys have raised the possibility that the edge of the roadway on the ocean side may have been compromised. If so, this may result in a realignment of the roadway slightly inland from its present course.

An estimate for completion of repairs at Regent’s Slide will be made once the date for the start of repairs there has been established. Given current schedules, Highway 1 should reopen at Paul’s Slide while repair work at Regent’s Slide is still ongoing.

Daily convoys for locals only have continued to be scheduled through Paul’s Slide in the north and southbound direction at 8 am and 4 pm. These convoys allow local residents living north of Paul’s Slide to travel south through Paul’s Slide to secure supplies as travel to the north is blocked by the Dolan Point and Regent’s Slides. Because passage through Paul’s Slide is by way of a dirt roadbed, convoys will continue as long as site conditions and weather make for safe travel.