Hwy. 101 traffic backed up on the Cuesta Grade. Here’s why

Traffic was backed up Monday morning on southbound Highway 101 near San Luis Obispo due to a lane closure for “emergency bridge repair,” according to the California Highway Patrol Traffic Incident Information Page.

Traffic cones began going up around the right-most slow lane at the base of the Grade at around 9 a.m..

At 10:09 a.m., officers began slowly weaving across the highway to slow traffic to allow for the closure, according to the CHP traffic incident information page.

At 10:18 a.m., a Caltrans supervisor reported the closure as an “emergency bridge repair” and said more signage would be added in the area, according to the page.

The closest bridge to the area is the Buena Vista Avenue overpass, but it’s unclear if that’s the structure being repaired.

At 10:50 a.m., it was reported the closure would last another half an hour, according to the page.

This story was originally published April 21, 2025 at 12:29 PM.

Chloe Shrager

The Tribune

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Chloe Shrager is the courts and crimes reporter for The Tribune. She grew up in Palo Alto, California, and graduated from Stanford with a B.A. in Political Science. When not writing, she enjoys surfing, backpacking, skiing and hanging out with her cat, Billy Goat. Support my work with a digital subscription