City Council approves 50-year vision plan for West Cliff Drive but votes against one-way traffic pilot project

SANTA CRUZ, Calif. (KION-TV)- UPDATE ON APRIL 10, 2024 AT 4:36 PM- The Santa Cruz City Council will be moving forward with the 50-year vision plan for West Cliff Drive.

However, councilmembers made amendments to the plan which included voting against the one way traffic pilot program.

If the project would have been approved, the eastbound lanes between Bay Street and Swanton Boulevard would have turned into a two-way bike path.

The current multi-use trail would have been for pedestrians only.

Many people live around West Cliff spoke during the council meeting saying they felt blind-sided by the proposal.

"Whether you support the 50 year vision or not, whether you support one-way or two-way, the pilot program was not communicated and articulated to those who would be impacted," Santa Cruz Councilwoman Shebreh Kalantari-Johnson said during the meeting.

Kalantari-Johnson and a city spokesperson told KION that public works staff must report back to the City Council by the end of the calendar year with implementation priorities for the next decade.

The report must include answering questions about transportation options, neighborhood impacts and how much cliff-top space is needed to meet collective needs.

Santa Cruz City Council to discuss whether to approve the 50-year vision plan for West Cliff Drive

The Santa Cruz City Council could decide the future of West Cliff Drive on Tuesday afternoon.

City Council discussed the topic on the future of the iconic road which has been damaged since the 2023 winter storms.

Multiple ideas brought up during the Santa Cruz City Council meeting.

Some of the lanes are closed off now, with the cliffside facing erosion issues.

The city is considering turning some areas into one-way zones as a result.

“It might be safer and slow people down because I know people drive really fast sometimes here and might be safer," Camille said.

All along West Cliff are detour signs and some of the people traveling around their say its impacting traffic flow.

“Under the one way one-way proposal half of West Cliff drive traffic is going to be diverted into the neighborhoods having a detrimental effect on quality of life for those residents," a city council speaker said. "Many of those residents haven’t recovered from the current detour route and hundreds are not even aware or just becoming aware of this pilot proposal.” 

A survey from the city find out that people who don't live along West Cliff are in favor of the plan, while those directly impacted by a one-way plan are divided on the issue.

“All of the neighbors in my group network have different opinions and perspectives about one-way and two-ways but one thing we absolutely agree on 100% is the introduction of traffic and noise," a speaker at the City Council meeting said. "It has had a significant impact on the quality of life in our neighborhood and our safety.” 

As rising tides and erosions threaten West Cliff drive road closure signs and large portions of West Cliff drive still remain closed as workers continue repairing the road.

The City of Santa Cruz is proceeding with the construction of infill walls at four locations on West Cliff drive.