Date: Monday, April 13, 2026
District: 05 - Santa Barbara, San Luis Obispo, Monterey, San Benito, and Santa Cruz Counties
Contact: Ashton Harris or Kevin Drabinski
Phone: (805) 549-3138 or (805) 549-3237
CLOSURE OF SOUTHBOUND HIGHWAY 1 ON-RAMP
AT PARK AVE. BEGINS APRIL 19
SANTA CRUZ COUNTY — A project to construct north and southbound auxiliary lanes and bus-on-shoulder improvements on Highway 1 between the Bay Avenue/Porter Street and State Park Drive interchanges continues this week.
On Sunday, April 19, crews will close the southbound Highway 1 onramp at Park Ave. The southbound Park Ave. onramp is scheduled to be closed for approximately six months. This is because the southbound section involves a more extensive scope of work which includes a full roadway structural replacement.
Travelers will have two detour options. One detour will be heading south on Soquel Dr. and the other will be south on McGregor Dr. where both roads lead to the southbound Highway 1 State Park Dr. onramp.
During the closure, crews will be making necessary improvements to the onramp to accommodate the bus-on-shoulder facilities.
Message and directional signs will alert travelers in advance of the areas under traffic control. Please allow for extra time for your travels through the area.
Project Background:
The contractor for this $78 million project is Granite Construction of Watsonville, CA and the project is expected to be completed by Fall of 2026. Updated project information for the improvements on Highway 1 between the Bay Ave./Porter St. and State Park Drive
interchanges can be found on the Santa Cruz County Regional Transportation Commission’s website at: https://sccrtc.org/projects/streets-highways/hwy1/bayporter-statepark/
Road information and updates can also be found on Caltrans Central Coast District 5 Social Media Platforms: X at @CaltransD5, Facebook at: Caltrans Central Coast (District 5) and Instagram at: Caltrans_D5.
For information about transportation projects transforming communities throughout the state, visit: Build.ca.gov.
Our crews deserve to get home safely too.
Drive slowly and carefully in work zones.
CHP Traffic Incident Information Page: https://cad.chp.ca.gov/
Traveler Information at: https://quickmap.dot.ca.gov/
