Celebrating the Groundbreaking of the Santa Cruz County Highway 1 Auxiliary Lanes and Mar Vista Overcrossing Project

Our team prepared the PA&ED and final PS&E for this project extending approximately 2.7 miles along Highway 1 in Santa Cruz County between Bay Street/Porter Street and State Park Drive interchanges in the City of Capitola and the unincorporated town of Aptos. We also prepared the final design for the Mar Vista Bicycle and Pedestrian Overcrossing.

The project will widen the existing Highway 1 by adding auxiliary lanes in the northbound and southbound directions to improve highway operational efficiency and safety by reducing conflicts between traffic entering and exiting SR-1, as well as replace a local street crossing Capitola Avenue to improve bicycle and pedestrian access. This project will improve connectivity for bicyclists and pedestrians between Soquel Drive to the north and the future Coastal Rail Trail to the south. It will also provide an additional lane between interchanges for bus-on-shoulder operations.

The Mar Vista Bicycle and Pedestrian Overcrossing will provide a safe link between schools, the beach, residential neighborhoods, and retail centers on each side of Highway 1, reduce travel distances for bicyclists and pedestrians by up to 1.6 miles, and minimize travel through the busy State Park Drive interchange.

This project is part of the Highway 1 Corridor Investment Program and was funded by Measure D local sales funds and state funding.