California's scenic Highway 1 to Big Sur opens to around-the-clock travel as slide repair advances
A section of California’s scenic Highway 1 leading to the famous Big Sur coast has reopened to around-the-clock traffic
BIG SUR, Calif. — 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
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