Quick Take
The next phase of work on Soquel Drive, from State Park Drive to Freedom Boulevard, is moving forward despite a funding gap of more than $5 million.
A project to smooth the way for drivers and others on Soquel Drive is moving forward with a state grant. But the Santa Cruz County Board of Supervisors still needs to find about $5 million dollars to close a funding gap.
This project is the second stage of the Soquel Drive Buffered Bike Lane and Congestion Mitigation Project, which combines new design features to make the major east-to-west artery safer for cyclists and pedestrians and more efficient for Santa Cruz Metro buses.
The first phase of work took place on a busy 5.6-mile stretch of Soquel Drive from La Fonda Avenue in Santa Cruz to State Park Drive in Aptos. After two years of construction, it’s nearly complete. County Community Development and Infrastructure spokesperson Tiffany Martinez said that the adaptive traffic signals – which change color based on the traffic volume and turn green when buses approach, in order to reduce public transit times and get more people riding the bus – are in the process of optimizing their function to fit real-world traffic patterns over the next few weeks.
The second phase is planned for a 2.4-mile section from State Park Drive to Freedom Boulevard. The improvements are similar: separated bike lanes, new sidewalks and curb ramps compliant with the Americans with Disabilities Act; the county will also install more adaptive traffic signals. Crews will also improve the pavement, drainage, striping and lighting. The county is paying for this phase with $21.3 million in grant funding from the state Solutions for Congested Corridors Program.
There is currently no groundbreaking date set for the project, and the county still has some financial questions to answer. The project’s total cost is just over $31 million, more than $26 million of which is for construction. There is also still about a $5.1 million funding gap for the construction phase.
The county expects to apply for grants in the next consolidated grant cycle, in about two years, to cover the funding gap. But without securing funding, the project will not be constructed. The first phase saw ballooning cost overruns, according to a staff report, and could occur once again in Phase 2. That could cause difficulty in completing other projects.
Bike Santa Cruz County to host first annual Santa Cruz Cycle Fair
Grab your helmet and wheels and take a ride to Bicycle Trip on Soquel Drive on April 11 for the first annual Santa Cruz Cycle Fair. The event is sponsored by local and state businesses and groups, including Bicycle Trip, BCycle, the California Office of Traffic Safety, Friends of the Rail Trail, Greenway/Trail Now and more.
The event is free and open to all ages, and aims to bring together the local cycling community. It will include live music, a bike rodeo for kids, a raffle with a bicycle as the biggest prize, food and beverages, and information booths and various demonstrations. There will also be a family-friendly bike ride.
Bike Santa Cruz County encourages attendees to come “on a bike that represents them,” which could mean something hand-made, well-worn or just a bike you love to use. Bike valet service will be free.
Click here to learn more.
Latest news
This week, pay particular attention to:
- Tree work, gas line work and utility work are shutting down one lane of Highway 9 between Twin Gates and Redwood Drive, Hihn Street and San Lorenzo Vavlley Elementary, San Lorenzo Way and Fall Creek Bridge, El Solyo Heights Drive and Arboleda Way/Highland, Marshall Creek Bridge and Alba Road, Pike Road and Western Avenue, Riverdale Park and Monaco Lane, Spring Creek Road and Riverside Drive, Pool Drive and Old County Highway, and McGaffigan Mill Road and Saratoga Toll Road from Monday through Friday between 9 a.m. and 4 p.m.
- Falsework installation will necessitate a full overnight closure of southbound Highway 1 at the Park Avenue interchange near Aptos on Monday from 9 p.m. to 5 a.m.
- Guardrail work is shutting down the auxiliary lane and right shoulder on southbound Highway 1 between Soquel Drive and 41st Avenue until March 23.
- Emergency sewer work in Soquel Village could occasionally block access to driveways, sidewalks, on-street parking and interrupt sewer service on weekdays until June 30, on Soquel Drive, Porter Street and Main Street. Work on Soquel Drive will be overnight from 8:30 p.m. to 5:30 a.m. and from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. on Porter and Main streets. Other, shorter-duration potholing on Porter, Main and Center streets and Daubenbiss Avenue will take place from 8:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m.
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