highway 1 road work
Road crews continue work on a five-mile section of Highway 1 through Watsonville. Photo: Tarmo Hannula/The Pajaronian

A six-month project to improve pavement quality on five miles of Highway 1 through Watsonville, both north and southbound, is moving toward completion.

“We have about three weeks of work remaining on this project,” said Caltrans spokesman Kevin Drabinski. “That timeline is weather dependent. During recent weeks, the cold, damp and foggy weather has brought delays. However, we are looking forward to making more progress with brighter days in the forecast.” 

The five-mile pavement rehabilitation job, which got underway Aug. 6, is being done on Highway 1 from the Pájaro River Bridge to one mile north of Buena Vista Drive.

“This project will result in a smoother, safer drive for the traveling public,” Drabinski said.

Travelers have encountered overnight ramp and lane closures at various locations within the project area over the last half-year. There have also been intermittent overnight closures of ramps.

The contractor for the $6.44 million project is Teichert Construction out of Sacramento. The original completion date was Nov. 17, 2023.

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Tarmo Hannula has been the lead photographer with The Pajaronian newspaper in Watsonville since 1997. More recently Good Times & Press Banner. He also reports on a wide range of topics, including police, fire, environment, schools, the arts and events. A fifth generation Californian, Tarmo was born in the Mother Lode of the Sierra (Columbia) and has lived in Santa Cruz County since the late 1970s. He earned a BA from UC Santa Cruz and has traveled to 33 countries.

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