Guardrail repairs begin along Highway 17
Caltrans crews began guardrail repairs along Highway 17 through the Santa Cruz Mountains on Monday, according to Susana Cruz with Caltrans.
Starting at around 9:30 a.m., the number two lane going north was closed at Pasatiempo Drive and drivers saw delays of about 15 minutes. Though, that’s nothing in comparison to what drivers had to deal with this winter.
“I am thankful I didn’t have to go through the mudslides. I know people had a terrible time with that this year,” said Scotts Valley resident Jennifer Isola.
Cal-trans says the winter storms caused lots of accidents and often times cars would go right into the guardrails leaving many of them needing repairs.
“The guardrails are there to protect us,” said Cruz. “When they get hit they serve their purpose but sometimes they might have a sharp edge or what is called an ‘end treatment’ that might need fixing or the middle of it or the whole thing.”
With Pasatiempo out of the way, Caltrans will be focusing on guardrails near Granite Creek Road on Tuesday and Wednesday from 9:30 a.m. – 2 p.m. Wednesday, it will be Summit Road from 9 a.m. – 2 p.m. and then on Thursday attention will be called to Laurel Curve from 9:30 a.m. to 2 p.m.
Even when there isn’t work road in progress on Highway 17 folks who use the busy road still deal with plenty of issues. Laurel Curve and the so-called “Wet Spot” have seen their fair share of accidents. Another concern: turning left onto Vine Hill Road when heading south.
“It (the turn lane) just doesn’t compensate for the room one needs for their safety because you have traffic in both directions,” said Lori Bryant who lives up the road.
Bryant adds that the turn lane has been a problem for years but it’s only been getting worse as the population in Santa Cruz County grows. However, it’s not just a problem for neighbors on Vine Hill Road. Isola says her husband has had some close calls when heading down the hill towards Santa Cruz.
“The turn lane is inadequate to get that traffic off the road so people are coming to a slamming halt in the fast lane very unexpectedly,” said Bryant.
We asked Caltrans about the turn lane but they say at this point they are only working on guardrail repairs.
Best advice for now from the California Highway Patrol is to slow down especially with construction going on.
“We are deploying more officers out here to help with the construction zone and also address the concerns of speeding and essentially Highway 17 becoming a race track,” said CHP Sgt. Grant Boles.
Drivers should expect at least a 15 minute delay until Thursday.
