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Caltrans says Topanga Canyon Boulevard will reopen sections by early March after design change
Summary
Caltrans and utility contractors described progress on Topanga Canyon Boulevard undergrounding and emergency repairs, announced a tentative early-March reopening of a half-mile two-way section, and outlined changes to pile design to avoid months-long delays.
Caltrans and contractor representatives told residents at a Topanga town hall that crews have made enough progress on emergency repairs and underground electrical work to tentatively reopen a half-mile section of Topanga Canyon Boulevard to two-way traffic by early March, weather permitting.
John Abbott, the project manager appearing for the construction team, said the job has two vaults remaining north of the library and about 1,500 feet of trenching left to complete, noting crews typically advance “somewhere between 300 to 400 feet a day” when conditions allow. Abbott urged residents to sign up for notifications from Southern California Edison and to forward outage notices to his office so staff can track and correct schedules.
Caltrans public-affairs representative Katie Masek summarized the expedited emergency project as an accelerated effort to complete about $20,000,000 worth of work—what would typically take three years—over roughly nine months. “Thanks to expedited measures and dedicated efforts from all of those crews … we are tentatively reopening this highway sooner than expected,” Masek said, adding the plan is to lift a one-way restriction on the half-mile section and operate two-way traffic from about 5 a.m. to 8 p.m.; crews would work overnight with single-lane controls from about 8 p.m. to midnight and keep the road closed from midnight to 5 a.m. for overnight work.
Project engineers said crews encountered unexpectedly hard conditions drilling foundation piles and revised the geotechnical design to shorten piles from roughly 65–67 feet to about 45 feet and to add an additional retaining wall behind the existing wall. A geotechnical lead said the change preserves the design’s structural intent while allowing the south and north anchor points to be completed first so traffic can be restored sooner without compromising safety.
Caltrans warned the schedule remains weather dependent. Officials said most remaining work—including repaving and finish work—will continue through summer, and they urged residents and business owners to watch notices for possible short-term overnight closures and 55-hour extended closures for critical operations.
The county and Caltrans staff said they will publish a firm opening date when crews have a final safety check and the geotechnical team clears the work area.
