Posts tagged “highway 1”

Transparency

We’re located near the Pacific Ocean, where Highway 1 scoots along past small towns like ours, and then zips long a crazy road known as Devil’s Slide, with a mountain to the east and a cliff edge to the left. A tunnel is being built (after decades of controversy and planning) but most of the progress is hidden by the mountain itself. Not to mention that as you drive along at breakneck speed, it behooves you not to peer too closely at whatever is not the road itself.

So what are they building in there? Well, Caltrans, in a remarkable display of transparency, has photographers who document the work as it progresses. The pictures are really amazing, showing the people, the process, and the previously hidden environment. For some these are simply your usual construction photos, but for people who drive by there every day, waiting for the tunnel to open (2011 or something) and have little sense of the work behind the scenes, this is a really wonderful peek. There are tons and tons of pictures to browse, and I’ve nicked a few, below.

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Traffic nightmare to ease

Returned home today to news that Devil’s Slide will re-open by 5 a.m., Friday, Aug. 4. This is fantastic! Four months after it closed, and 7 weeks earlier than estimated. I have felt pretty trapped in Montara, with poor access to San Francisco, and more planning required for out-of-town meetings and lunches and like. My colleagues have been understanding of the limitations, but it’s still hard not to feel marginalized by location. And I don’t even have a regular commute like so many others!

The Aug. 4 opening does not mean all repair work will be done by then. While work required to stabilize the road will be complete, drainage and electrical systems work will continue together with some erosion control into September.

Highway of Heavenly Views Turns Commute Into Hell

The New York Times writes about our local Highway 1/Devil’s Slide closure.

Not that the problems, or the need to make do, are new. The highway has been closed dozens of times because of unstable geology, once in 1995 when a rock slide caused it to drop eight feet. In all, the roadway has fallen 46 feet since 1937, when the state first paved it.

It’s easy to feel abandoned out here on the coast with commute/road/traffic problems – many people in this area don’t know about the closure, don’t know what Devil’s Slide is, haven’t heard of Montara, etc. So some national coverage of our local woes at least offers a bit of validation.

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