Caltrans wraps $3.6M culvert replacement on PCH in Laguna Beach

A construction crew furiously working on a section of the Pacific Coast Highway in Laguna Beach were seen this week putting the finishing touches on a Laguna Culvert Replacement project that complicated traffic patterns during its two-month lifespan.

The work is part of a $3.6 million project being undertaken by the California Department of Transportation to remove and replace aging and corroded concrete box culverts under a portion of the highway south of Broadway Street.

Funded by the 2020 State Highway Operation and Protection Program (SHOPP) — which makes provisions for the repair, preservation and improvement of the state highway system — the project began in March with construction starting April 1.

Caltrans spokeswoman Darcy Birden said Thursday the century-old culvert structure diverts excess rainwater away from the city’s downtown area toward the ocean as a flood control measure. The advanced age and deteriorated condition of the structure made the project a safety priority as crumbling cement walls exposed corroded rebar.

“We had a short schedule — we had to work 24 hours [a day], essentially, because it had to be completed outside the rainy season,” Birden said of the project, in which crews sometimes worked double shifts.

A team of cement workers pour and fill new cement, making a sidewalk as Caltrans finishes Laguna Canyon Channel project on Coast Highway in downtown Laguna Beach.

(Don Leach / Staff Photographer)

A citywide moratorium on major construction projects between Memorial Day and Labor Day added some scheduling pressure, after an initial fall 2020 construction schedule was delayed. But, minus some minor tweaking, the bulk of the work will be completed by Friday, Birden said.

Completed in two phases, the construction caused some long-term lane closures, as traffic flow on Coast Highway between Broadway and Ocean Avenue was reduced to one lane each way to accommodate the removal of pavement so crews could access the culvert.

Crews working under contract with Caltrans occasionally worked double shifts to complete a $3.6M Laguna Culvert Replacement project before a Memorial Day deadline.

(Don Leach / Staff Photographer)

Support our coverage by becoming a digital subscriber.