Highway 1 has reopened at Rocky Creek. What’s status of other Big Sur closures?
A stretch of Highway 1 reopened near Big Sur on Monday afternoon, Caltrans said.
After more than a year of construction, both lanes of the highway opened to traffic through Rocky Creek.
“This is certainly good news for those looking to get into Big Sur,” Caltrans District 5 public affairs manager Jim Shivers told The Tribune.
On March 30, 2024, a landslide barreled through the highway, chipping off a southbound section of the road at Rocky Creek, which is 12 miles south of Carmel. This section of the highway has been under one-way traffic control since then.
“Today’s reopening represents an engineering marvel and triumph in resilience for Big Sur residents, business owners and their elected officials,” Caltrans District 5 Director Scott Eades said in a news release. “The restoration of service along this famed transportation lifeline is a shared success and testament to their patience, hard work and community spirit.”
After the slide, Caltrans offered twice-daily convoys through the construction area in the northbound lane.
“Crews worked daytime and overnight shifts to stabilize the remaining roadway and prevent additional slide activity,” the release said. “To execute a key step in restoring stability to the damaged area, crews lowered rock dowels into vertical shafts drilled deep into the slope. This engineering strategy allowed work to continue, while keeping workers in a safer environment. “
Caltrans hired the Walnut-Creek-based company Gordon N. Ball, Inc. and the Sacramento-based company Teichert Construction to complete the $15.4 million project.
“Caltrans would like to thank the residents and businesses of Big Sur for their patience and communication during these emergency repairs,” the release said. “These valued partnerships helped the department create work schedules that reduced disruptions to planned community events.”
Construction continues at Rocky Creek seawall, Regent’s slide
Meanwhile, crews will continue to repair the seawall at Rocky Creek, where the water meets the coastline.
Construction will result in occasional lane closures in the Rocky Creek area during the summer, Shivers said.
“The restored barrier will better protect this section of Highway 1 and increase roadway resiliency,” the release said.
Meanwhile, Highway 1 remains closed at the site of the Regent’s Slide, a 6.8-mile segment of the road that extends from 1 mile south of the Esalen Institute to 2 miles north of Lucia.
That slide tumbled down the highway on Feb. 9, 2024.
Construction crews work on repairs seven days a week, but they have continued to detect movement in the landslide — so there is no estimated reopening date, Shivers said.
