Carmageddon: As winter arrives, Santa Cruz County, Caltrans work to prep mountain roads

Winter is essentially here, and both Santa Cruz County staff and local transit agencies are gearing up for seasonal preparations on the roads by clearing drains and culverts, preparing snowplows and resurfacing roads as they look ahead to longer-term projects that involve more repaving and bicycle and pedestrian upgrades.

With the first substantial storms hitting the county last week, it was perfect timing for transit agencies and county infrastructure staff to meet with Santa Cruz Mountains residents. On Thursday, more than 30 residents got the breakdown on the latest projects that have finished up in their region as well as what is expected in the coming years.

The meeting, hosted by District 5 County Supervisor Monica Martinez, included Steve Wiesner, assistant director of public works for the county, Dave Reid, director of the county Office of Response, Recovery and Resilience, and a team from state agency Caltrans.

Roads have long been a major issue across the county, with a 2024 grand jury report showing that 63% of local roads are in “poor to failed” condition. Martinez vowed to address the issue when she took office, but the county often struggles to find the funds for road repairs.

Wiesner recalled the destructive winter of 2023, when roads suffered serious damage at 250 sites across the county, 73 of which were up in San Lorenzo Valley and Santa Cruz Mountains communities. He said even during standard winters, the county should expect some deterioration. Last year, he said, about eight sites suffered serious damage, while Mountain Charlie Road fell apart completely due to a landslide.

Wiesner said prep work can help prevent some of the damage. Work on clearing drains and culverts to prevent flooding is already underway.

“On a day like today, you bet all the crews were out all day long opening drains up,” he said as rain fell outside the Highlands Park Community Center in Ben Lomond, adding that residents probably do plenty of that themselves, too. “We all kind of have to figure out how to take care of ourselves up here.”

Wiesner said crews have prioritized resurfacing in recent years, stretching from Felton all the way to Boulder Creek. The biggest project coming up will be pavement maintenance on 4 miles of Bear Creek Road, expected to start in summer 2027. Other maintenance projects include Glenwood Drive, Highland Way, Upper East Zayante Road and a bridge replacement on San Lorenzo Way.

Caltrans has the most upcoming work in the region, with 10 separate projects in the pipeline over the next six years, including safety improvements for cyclists and pedestrians in Felton and Boulder Creek. There are also drainage improvements planned for 17 locations between Pike Road and the Highway 9-Highway 236 intersection, replacements of the San Lorenzo River and Kings Creek Bridge intersections, and a new bridge at Waterman Gap south of Saratoga Toll Road.

Caltrans is also doing winter prep of its own, which closely mirrors the county’s preparation: “We look at all the ditch and drain systems and make sure they’re clear, can handle the capacity, and if they need any maintenance,” said project manager Kelli Hill. 

The agency is prepared for snowfall in the mountains, with crews plow trucks ready to go, since crews can also use the plows to clear slides, Hill said.

Even though the county has a North County, Mid-County and South County road crew, there are only 12 people to each crew. Since the North County crew is in charge of the area from Highway 17 to Highway 1 and all the way to the Highway 17 summit, responding to damage reports can take time.

“A lot of operations take six to eight people, so it sometimes takes a little bit to get to the service calls, but we do get there eventually,” said Wiesner.

And as the winter ramps up, Wiesner said that residents should not hesitate to call public works to notify them of new problems: “You guys are our eyes and ears in the field here.”

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Check out our Carmageddon road project list here. This week, pay particular attention to:

• Roadway improvements are shutting down one lane of Highway 9 between Willow Brook Drive and the northern junction of Highway 236 starting on Monday and lasting through May 20, 2026. Work hours are between 8 p.m. to 6 a.m. and 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. on Mondays through Thursdays.

• Paving and electrical work is shutting down the northbound Highway 1 on-ramp at Main Street and the off-ramp at Airport Boulevard in Watsonville overnight between 9 p.m. and 6 a.m. from Monday through Friday.

• Drainage, striping work and guardrail repair are shutting down the northbound and southbound Highway 17 off-ramps at Pasatiempo Drive and Mount Hermon Road overnight from Monday through Friday between 8:30 p.m. to 6 a.m. 

• Pavement, guardrail and erosion control work are shutting down about 1 mile of Upper East Zayante Road on weekdays between 8 a.m. and 4:30 p.m. through early November. The road will open up between noon and 12:30 p.m. each day to let traffic pass.

• A full closure of the Murray Street Bridge will run until February 2026. It is closed to vehicles, bicycles and pedestrians. Vehicle traffic detours are along Soquel Avenue and Capitola Road via Seabright Avenue and 7th Avenue. Bicycles are being detoured across Arana Gulch and along Broadway via Seabright Avenue and 7th Avenue. Pedestrians are being detoured around the north harbor.

• The installation of the Newell Creek Pipeline on Graham Hill Road between Summit Avenue and Lockewood Lane is taking place on weekdays from 8:30 a.m. to 4 p.m. and could cause delays of up to five minutes.

• Utility and tree work is shutting down sections of Highway 9 between California Drive/Middle Road and Pike Road, Pike Road and Clear Creek/Pacific Street, and Bear Creek Road and Spring Creek Road from 9 a.m. to 2 p.m. between Monday and Friday.

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