Quick Take
After years of planning, the Murray Street Bridge project is finally in its pre-construction stage as crews take the first steps toward fully breaking ground. The city is aiming for an early to mid-March start date, and hopes to finish up between fall 2027 and January 2028.
The City of Santa Cruz has finally begun work on a major $50 million retrofit of the Murray Street Bridge that will add new bike lanes and pedestrian walkways, but also throw a wrench into commutes along the major crosstown artery over the Santa Cruz Harbor for the next nearly three years.
The project, which has been in discussion since the 1990s, seeks to strengthen the bridge with additional pilings and an improved foundation to better withstand earthquakes. Along with new piles, columns and new barrier rails, crews will also introduce a bridge deck with 6-foot-wide bike lanes and a 7½-foot-wide sidewalk along the ocean side of the bridge to allow a two-way pedestrian travel path.
A City of Santa Cruz news release said the project is expected to be completed by January 2028, slightly later than the initial estimates of fall 2027. The city originally planned to begin construction in October 2024, but it took some time to negotiate a contract with Woodside-based Shimmick Construction, the company carrying out the work.
The project will cause significant traffic impacts. While two-way pedestrian traffic will remain, the city’s news release said the bridge will allow only one-way eastbound traffic (toward Live Oak) for vehicles and bicycles, with detours marked for all westbound traffic (toward Seabright). City of Santa Cruz Public Works Director Nathan Nguyen told Lookout in December that the plan is to maintain eastbound traffic “for a majority of the project.” The city’s project webpage says the bridge could require a full closure at certain periods due to moving equipment and setting up for different stages of construction. The harbor paths running beneath the bridge will also be closed occasionally.
On Friday, Nguyen told Lookout that the pre-construction activities included tree trimming and performing a biological survey — taking a look at things like nesting birds in the area to ensure that the construction is minimizing ecological impacts. He said that the “true groundbreaking” is likely to occur in early to mid-March, but that the timeline is still subject to change.
“We’re still waiting to evaluate a better baseline schedule from the contractor, but we’re getting started a little later than we initially anticipated,” Nguyen said, adding that public works is also meeting with the port district to make sure the city is meeting requirements related to relocating docks and possibly businesses affected by construction.
Once the work does begin, construction will take place Monday through Friday from 7 a.m. to 6 p.m., with some weekend work as needed. Crews will cover stockpiles and spray water to capture airborne dust particles and bring them to the ground in order to mitigate impacts from airborne materials.
Latest news
Check out our Carmageddon road project list here. This week, pay particular attention to:
- Caltrans expects the on-ramp to southbound Highway 1 from Bay Avenue in Capitola to reopen on Feb. 28, following a roadway excavation. It has been closed since late September to allow construction crews to build a new ramp. Drivers can take a detour north on Porter Street to Soquel Drive, then east to Park Avenue, where they can rejoin Highway 1. They may also head south on Bay Avenue to Park Avenue, and rejoin southbound Highway 1 there.
- Striping along northbound and southbound Highway 1 between Bay Avenue and State Park Drive will cause overnight closures of both lanes in each direction. The northbound closures will occur between 9 p.m. and 5 a.m. from Tuesday through Friday. The closures will alternate between lanes, so one lane will be open in each direction at any given time.
- Tree work and slope repair will close down sections of Highway 9 from Monday through Thursday from 7 a.m. to 4 p.m. Those sections are between Russell Avenue and Fall Creek Road, San Lorenzo Elementary and Mt. Cross Camp Road, Brown Gables Road and Western Avenue, Prospect Avenue and Lorenzo Avenue, and Bear Creek Road and Sequoia Road.
- In Watsonville, a single lane on Green Valley Road from Holohan Road to Casserly Road is closed for the Multi-Use Trail Improvement Project. Lane closures occur from 8:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m., Monday through Friday. Additionally, a single lane is closed on Buena Vista Drive and Ranport Road for overhead tree trimming on weekdays from 8:30 a.m. to 4:00 p.m., causing potential delays.
Have something to say? Lookout welcomes letters to the editor, within our policies, from readers. Guidelines here.