Busy Highway 46 rest area reopens after $1.1 million renovation. What changed?
The roadside rest stop in Shandon off Highway 46 East reopened Monday after extensive renovations.
The $1.1 million project focused on improvements to the wastewater system, with upgrades to the advanced treatment wastewater disposal system and the installation of a cloud-based resource monitoring system, according to a news release from Caltrans.
The reopening includes full access to the electronic vehicle charging system, the release said.
The roadside rest stop had been closed since earlier this year, Caltrans said.
The facility in northern San Luis Obispo County is used by thousands of travelers every year, Jim Shivers, public information officer for Caltrans’ District 5, wrote via Twitter.
There are two other nearby roadside rest stops undergoing renovations, according to the release.
The wastewater system at the Gaviota rest area on Highway 101 in Santa Barbara County is being updated, and will remain closed until about February 2022, according to the release. The estimated cost of the Gaviota project is $4.7 million, Caltrans said.
The Camp Roberts rest area on Highway 101 in Monterey County will be closed for renovations to its wastewater system, among other updates from late 2021, until summer of 2022, according to the release.
That project is estimated to cost about $5.7 million, Caltrans said.
“These projects will upgrade all wastewater systems to meet current health and safety codes, will decrease maintenance repairs and conserve and protect environmental resources,” the agency said in the release.
Caltrans advised motorists to visit the agency’s website to find alternative stopping points along their route.
