Gov. Gavin Newsom to attend Highway 1 reopening near Big Sur
Gov. Gavin Newsom will be among the officials gathering Friday to celebrate the reopening of Highway 1 near Big Sur, the governor’s office announced.
News about the governor’s attendance at the media-only event broke just a few hours before the 11 a.m. ceremony is due to begin at Rat Creek, about 70 miles north of Cambria.
The scenic stretch of Highway 1 between Cambria and Carmel is reopening nearly three months after debris flows sent 150 feet of pavement and the supporting cliff into the sea.
Soon, vehicles will once again be allowed to travel on the 5-mile stretch of road that had been closed since late January, when a torrential rainstorm overwhelmed drainage systems under the pavement, resulting in a mudslide.
At Friday’s ceremony, Newsom will join officials including Caltrans Director Toks Omishakin, Congressman Jimmy Panetta, Monterey County Supervisor Mary Adams and representatives of the California Highway Patrol, Big Sur Chamber of Commerce and Monterey County Visitors Bureau.
Caltrans and contractor crews worked seven days a week during daylight hours to bring the $11.5 project to the point where the road could reopen — two months earlier than previously expected.
Some chores still need to be completed — such as installation of redundant drainage systems under the pavement, but that work can be done while the road is open. Some traffic limitations, such as reversing one-way traffic with flaggers controlling the flow, will continue.
Delays of up to 10 minutes would not be unusual, according to Caltrans.
The reopening of Highway 1 will be a boon to those whose lives and livelihoods have been curtailed by the closure of the popular All-American Highway link between the Central Coast and the Monterey peninsula.
“Reopening Highway 1 at Rat Creek less than three months after a washout of this magnitude is great news for residents, recreationalists, business owners and those who move goods through this region,” Omishakin said in a news release. “Caltrans has been focused on the emergency work needed to increase the resiliency of this highway section to extreme weather and the fixes made will allow for safe travel.”
As Caltrans District 5 spokesman Jim Shivers told The Tribune in March, “The state highway system is here to enhance the economy … When this highway is reopened, then we’ve done our part in enhancing the economy and allowing California to have a transportation system that works for them.”
Friday’s reopening ceremony will feature Newsom’s second visit to the Central Coast in recent months.
In March, the governor held a news conference at a San Luis Obispo County Public Health Department coronavirus vaccination site at Cuesta College in San Luis Obispo, highlighting efforts to speed up the administering of COVID-19 vaccines.
This story was originally published April 23, 2021 at 9:09 AM.
