The latest full closure of the Murray Street Bridge will begin Wednesday, meaning another few months of detours around the key artery over the Santa Cruz Harbor.
This closure will mirror the bridge’s previous full closure, which ran from late June 2025 until late January 2026. Once again, both lanes of the bridge will be shut down to cars, bicycles and pedestrians. The closure is expected to last through September.
Per a media release from the City of Santa Cruz, the closure is necessary for the next phase of construction on the east (Live Oak) side of the bridge, which includes pile driving and work on the foundation in order to strengthen the structure and allow it to better withstand earthquakes. The previous full closure allowed crews to install new piles and conduct similar work on the west (Seabright) end of the bridge. The work has to happen during the summer, as it is within the in-water construction period that environmental permits have specified in order to protect sensitive species and habitats.
Detours will be implemented throughout the full closure. Vehicles will be directed to Seabright Avenue, Soquel Avenue, Capitola Road and 7th Avenue. Cyclists will be detoured through Arana Gulch and Broadway via Seabright Avenue and 7th Avenue. Pedestrians will be detoured around the north harbor toward Eaton Street, 7th Avenue and Brommer Street.
Although the project began only in early 2025, it had been in the works for decades. The previous full closure disrupted a major east-west thoroughfare and significantly affected the surrounding Seabright neighborhood in various ways, including traffic congestion and major losses for many of the nearby businesses from Seabright to the Santa Cruz Harbor. Once the previous full closure reopened in late January, the city attempted to allow vehicles to travel both directions with a one-way alternating traffic signal, but promptly reverted back to only eastbound traffic about a week later after both sides of the bridge saw severe gridlock that spilled into the neighborhood streets and city staff observed dangerous driving.
This time, commuters, business owners and Seabright residents can take solace in the fact that the upcoming closure is expected to be the bridge’s final long-term shutdown. There are two final full closures planned before the anticipated January 2028 completion date: one scheduled to last one week in February 2027 and another scheduled to last two weeks in December 2027.
The annual Wharf to Wharf Race will also be rerouted for the second time due to a full bridge closure. It will start on Portola Drive in Live Oak, head west toward the harbor and then turn left at the Eaton Street-Lake Avenue intersection to rejoin its usual course along East Cliff Drive toward Capitola Village.
The project is currently still on pace to wrap up in January 2028.
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