Just north of Cambria along Highway 1, a stretch of road that was forced to close more than a year ago will finally open back up by the end of the month.
“Highway 1 is very vital, not only for me but for everybody and for the tourists because that’s the scenic route,” said Francine Esposito, owner of Hwy 41 Antique Emporium.
Highway 1 brings visitors to the Central Coast from both the north and the south. During the winter storms of 2023, Highway 1 at Paul’s Slide was closed in January after an estimated 500,000 cubic yards of material fell across the highway.
“I still go up but I don’t go all the way, so this works perfect for me because for a cyclist, besides the trucks, we can go up there and not have a real lot of traffic as much as we used to,” said Bill Walters of Cambria.
Walters has lived in Cambria for the past 20 years. “When it was open, we used to make a couple trips a year to Big Sur,” he said.
The reopening of Paul’s Slide will give people like Walters direct access to the community of Lucia, the Camaldoli hermitage and people living within the newly reopened section of the highway.
Caltrans says a major challenge has been continuous movement of the slide. The completion of the repairs will open a 4.3-mile section.
Francine Esposito opened her business in 2010 in Morro Bay and felt the impacts of the highway’s closure.
“We had a pretty bad year last year as I’m sure everybody did. Gradually it got better but it still diverted people from coming up and down here. They either went on the 101, totally skipped the Central Coast, not just me but everybody," Esposito said.
Although the Paul’s Slide area will be reopening, another closure, Regent’s Slide, which is further up north, will leave drivers unable to drive fully through Highway 1. Regent’s slide closure is a 6.8-mile segment of Highway 1, which is estimated to open in the fall. Highway 1 will then be open along the entire run of the Big Sur coast between Cambria and Carmel.
“Every little bit helps, so if they open it at Paul’s Slide, that will be great,” Walters said.
“I’ll be happy when it fully opens and the normal traffic returns,” Esposito said.
The portion of Highway 1 at Paul’s Slide is expected to reopen on Sunday, June 23, The total cost for the project is estimated at $60 million.
