Saratoga Bridge from the Inside Out

Saratoga Creek Bridge a distinctive project for Santa Clara County

‘Bridge within a bridge’ for 115-year-old structure

By Matt O’Donnell

The Saratoga Creek Bridge project is as unique as the area itself.

Nestled off Highway 9 in Santa Clara County, the two-lane, northbound/southbound highway in the Santa Cruz Mountains is in a scenic and woodsy area of Northern California. The highway connects Saratoga with Felton in Santa Clara County. Just to the side of the bridge is Saratoga Springs, a business that boasts that it is family owned and operated since the late 1800’s. The operation specializes in company picnics, weddings, and other special events.

While many brides and grooms have said “I do!” over the years, the city of Saratoga and the county of Santa Clara partnered with Caltrans for their own vows on this project.

The bridge, near the intersection of Sanborn Road, was originally built in 1902. It is about 165 feet long and 24 feet wide. Inspections determined that it was seismic and structurally deficient by Caltrans' Office of Structure Maintenance and Investigation.

After outreach with the community, it was determined that the new bridge will retain the outer, visible, portion of the original stone bridge. Construction began in April and is expected to conclude in December of 2023, depending on weather.

The project will be mainly day work, but some intermittent night construction is expected too, according to Caltrans Project Manager Gregory Carroll. While the bridge is being constructed, there will be one-way traffic control. At certain other announced periods, there will need to be a full closure and detours will be utilized, he added.

There were plenty of goals that needed to be met.

“The challenge for the design team was to address the existing bridge’s structural and seismic deficiencies while maintaining the cultural and historic aspects of the bridge,” Gregory said in an email. “In order to meet the challenge, the team developed a design that tucks a new bridge (constructed to current design standards) inside the interior of the existing bridge. Thereby, it maintains the aesthetic of the existing bridge while improving the overall safety of the bridge crossing.”

Highway 9 and the Saratoga Creek Bridge are used frequently by cyclists during the day. Resident Engineer Arif Khan said cyclists should still be able to use the bridge often.

“The impact should be limited as we will have one-way traffic control most of the time,” Khan said via email.

More challenges were presented to Public Information Officer Victor Gauthier, who was responsible for letting the public and the media know about the project well in advance.

Gauthier even recorded a video advisory for the project during a chilly morning in mid-December of 2022.

“One of the biggest challenges was making sure we got the information out in a timely manner to all of our partnering agencies as well as the local community and the neighboring communities,” he said. “Since this is a big, major project, it’s going to benefit the community and the county. We want to make sure the outreach is done properly so that everyone has the information that they need.”

Gauthier said the unique design was different from a public information standpoint.

“At Caltrans, we build bridges, but with this project, we’re building a bridge within a bridge because we want to maintain the original façade of this historic Saratoga Creek bridge,” he said. “Not only is it a magnificent feat, but it’s unique and challenging at the same time.”

The Saratoga Creek Bridge is a long time in the works. Carroll said design development began in 2014.

“(Since then) there has been a history of highly talented individuals involved in this project who tackled some of the bigger challenges,” he said.

Carroll has been with the project for the last year.

“From a project management standpoint, the biggest challenge has been to ensure that all stakeholders are involved in the design process,” he said. “The bridge has significant design, right of way and environmental constraints that need to be accounted for equally and requires a heavy amount of coordination.”

For more on the project, check out https://dot.ca.gov/caltrans-near-me/district-4/d4-projects/d4-santa-clara-sr9-saratoga-creek-bridge