California transportation officials will finally reopen a stretch of iconic Highway 1 in the scenic Big Sur coastal region that was blocked last year by a massive landslide.
The crucial road that connects Los Angeles to San Francisco was projected to open in mid-September but Caltrans announced it will open to all travelers on Wednesday, officials announced.
Caltrans District 5 wrote in a tweet: "contractor John Madonna made great progress past week so final roadway striping & inspection by our crews is underway."
Highway 1 has been dogged by slides since December 2016, but the one that hit at Mud Creek near Ragged Point in May 2017 was monumental. Millions of tons of earth moved, displacing 75 acres of land.
The debris slid well out into the ocean, creating 15 acres of new coastline about 9 miles north of the Monterey-San Luis Obispo county line.
Caltrans had since been working to stabilize the slide in order to rebuild the highway over it. The $54 million project included building a massive rock seawall at the foot of the slide.
