Thousands of drivers see it daily: The damaged fence on the overpass hanging over Highway 1 south of the State Park Drive exit in Aptos. The fence — a casualty of the winter 2016 mega-storm that left $130 million in damage — has still not been repaired.
However, it has not been overlooked.
Shannon Munz, spokeswoman for the Santa Cruz County Regional Transportation Commission, provided this explanation:
“We previously put this project out to bid in 2020 and received one bid, which was high. At that time, we decided to reject the bid and repackage the contract to include an interim fix since we have a Highway 1 project under development that will replace the bridge in its entirety in 5-10 years.”
She added, “The repackaging of the contract required Caltrans approval of an encroachment permit rider, which we are still waiting for them to approve. We expect to be able to advertise for this project in the next few weeks and award in June with construction taking place this summer.”
•••
Editor’s note: Thanks to Aptos resident Becky Steinbruner for asking the question.