Traffic & Transit
Coming Traffic Woes At Main Beach, Coast Highway, Explained
Caltrans is replacing a 100-year-old box culvert under Coast Highway at Main Beach this spring, and yes, you can expect a traffic nightmare.
LAGUNA BEACH, CA — Beneath Coast Highway at Main Beach, there's a box culvert that carries stormwater out of downtown to alleviate flooding.
The current box culvert is 100 years old.
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"The concrete inside is crumbling, exposing corroded rebar," according to City Manager John Pietig. When rebar meets air, it rusts, and this section has caused stability concerns.
Find out what's happening in Laguna Beachfor free with the latest updates from Patch.
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"For the safety of drivers using Coast Highway, the culvert must be replaced as soon as possible," Pietig says.
Read: Roadwork Through Memorial Day To Affect Laguna Drivers, Stores
Find out what's happening in Laguna Beachfor free with the latest updates from Patch.
Starting in mid-March, overnight pre-construction work will go into play. The work will be done overnight, from 8 p.m. until 4:30 a.m. on Monday, March 15 through Thursday, March 18, and from 10 p.m. Friday, March 19 until 4:30 a.m. on Saturday, March 20.
Construction work will be done in two phases, and Caltrans crews will be working double shifts
as needed to finish by Memorial Day.
Downtown traffic control will be provided by the City of Laguna Beach and Caltrans 7 days/week to help mitigate traffic impacts due to the long-term lane closures needed to complete the work safely and quickly. Parking on Coast Highway between Broadway and Ocean will be restricted and traffic will be reduced to one lane in each direction for the duration of construction.
Adjacent businesses will be open during construction.
The City of Laguna Beach's Emergency and Disaster Preparedness Committee Chairman, Matt Lawson, shared the roadwork's necessity, already delayed since fall.
"Either we do it when we schedule it, or we do it when the road caves in," Lawson said at a recent city council meeting.
"It's going to be Carmageddon," Lawson said. Between winter rains, summer traffic, fall fire danger, there is no choice but to do it in the spring. "It will be an inconvenience for many, but it has to get done."
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How will this project affect your travel in and out of Laguna Beach? Let us know in the comments or by emailing your Patch Editor.
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