What’s the latest with Prado Road overpass? SLO explores designs for Highway 101 project
San Luis Obispo may be a few years out from construction starting on the long-awaited Prado Road overpass on Highway 101 — but the city needs your help before it can proceed.
In a public meeting Wednesday night, city officials gave an update on the status of the project, which is meant to build a new bridge connecting eastern and southern San Luis Obispo between the existing Madonna Road and Los Osos Valley Road exits.
The city is currently looking for public feedback on the project as part of its environmental review process.
The overpass will connect a redesigned Prado Road to an already built roundabout near the San Luis Ranch housing development.
Engineer Wyatt Banker-Hix said San Luis Obispo has been looking to add the overpass for some time to help relieve traffic congestion throughout the city as more development takes place.
“If you think about San Luis Ranch across the highway, we’ve got Avila Ranch, all of the new industrial facilities that you might see off Los Osos Valley Road ... all of that is creating more traffic,” he told the assembled crowd at Wednesday’s meeting. “Those people are looking to go north-south and east-west. So that’s where Prado interchange comes in.”
The city and Caltrans have partnered for the overpass project, which is expected to be completed by about 2029.
SLO exploring 3 designs for Highway 101 overpass
Before construction can get underway, however, the city has to go through the environmental review process. As part of that, it is required to explore a number of potential design plans.
At Wednesday’s meeting , project representatives presented the three alternatives they are currently exploring.
Two of the options are pretty similar.
The first would add a roundabout connecting Prado Road with the new overpass and the Highway 101 northbound on- and off-ramps, in roughly the same configuration as they are now. The second option would replace the roundabout with a signaled intersection.
The third option includes a roundabout at the end of Prado Road, but configures the northbound highway on-ramp to loop backwards briefly before aligning with the highway, which would create an even longer auxiliary lane for drivers to merge with traffic.
None of the options include plans to add a southbound exit and entrance at the overpass as this time, according to Jay Walter, of the consulting firm GHD.
That’s because Caltrans studies indicated there would not be enough traffic volume to warrant the addition, he said.
Elks Lane would have to be moved to make with way for the project, Walter said. The frontage road runs parallel to Highway 101 in front of the Sunset Drive-In outdoor movie theater and currently connects to Prado Road right where the new on-ramps would be.
According to Walter, Elks Lane could either be reconfigured to wrap behind 40 Prado Homeless Services Center before connecting with Prado Road further down the street from the overpass, or it could wrap around the back of Sunset Drive-In and connect to Prado Road from there.
Notably, the city and Caltrans have only been exploring plans for a bridge overpass, and not a filled-in embankment style overpass as seen in other parts of the city.
Walter said that is because the location of the new overpass is smack dab in the middle of a flood plain, meaning it needs to be open enough to allow for water in the event of major flooding.
The new bridge will feature protected bike and pedestrian paths, he said.
“It’s going to be a big bridge out there,” Walter said, “but it’s going to accommodate bicycles and pedestrians very well, and it will accommodate the traffic that needs to go back and forth across.”
The city is concurrently pursuing a separate plan to widen the Prado Road bridge near South Higuera Street, which would help to align the road better with the new overpass.
How will overpass project be funded?
One of the biggest issues facing the project is going to be securing funding for what promises to be a pricey endeavor.
“This is a very large project and it’s one of the most expensive projects that city has undertaken,” Banker-Hix said during the meeting.
According to a 2018 estimate of costs, the overpass project was expected to cost about $74 million, with that split up between Caltrans, San Luis Obispo County, San Luis Obispo Council of Governments (SLOCOG) and the city of San Luis Obispo.
According to that estimate, the city would be on the hook for the largest share — $59.3 million — while San Luis Ranch developers promised the next largest chunk, $7.3 million, to help fund the project.
SLOCOG was expected to provide $6 million while the county would kick in $1.4 million.
Since that initial agreement, however, costs have skyrocketed. Banker-Hix said it is likely the project will require quite a bit more funding.
He said the project representatives plan to connect with stakeholders as the plans get more finalized to see if larger financial commitments could be secured.
For SLO, a portion of that money would likely come from federal and grant funding, he added.
What are the next steps for Prado Road project?
If all goes as planned, the city could finalize plans for the Prado Road interchange by as soon as 2025, with construction set to begin by the end of that year, Banker-Hix said.
From there, the project would likely take about three years to complete.
The city and Caltrans are soliciting feedback from the public on the plans through March 6.
The environmental documents for the project are available for review at slocity.org/Prado.
Comments can be submitted via email at Dianna.Beck@dot.ca.gov or by mailing Dianna Beck, Associate Environmental Planner, District 5 Environmental Division, California Department of Transportation, 50 Higuera St., San Luis Obispo, CA, 93401.
This story was originally published February 17, 2023 at 10:00 AM.
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