A years-in-the-making plan to build an interchange in Castroville gets the funding to begin.

Erik Chalhoub here, reminded of how slow the bureaucratic process is after stumbling upon a 2009 annual report from the Transportation Agency for Monterey County.

The pamphlet has a list of projects in the planning stages as of 2009 (with the words “Waiting to be done” in all caps), and much of it reads like it could have been written today. There’s talk of adding a commuter rail station in Pajaro (still waiting), building a light rail between Monterey and Marina (that ship has sailed) and improving Highway 68 flow (that happened recently, if ever so slightly).

There are projects listed in the pipeline that have been completed, such as the Highway 1/Salinas Road interchange in Royal Oaks, new interchanges along Highway 101 in Prunedale and a pedestrian crossing in Castroville.

What caught my eye was the note that Caltrans had begun circulating environmental documents for improvements on Highway 156 through Castroville, because 17 years later, that project is finally close to breaking ground.

On Tuesday, July 28, TAMC announced that the California Transportation Commission awarded $60 million in grant funding for the interchange project in the highly traveled (and often dangerous) stretch of roadway. That brings the total to $90.6 million from Senate Bill 1, which means work is expected to start in the fall.

The project will remove the stop light at the intersection of Castroville Boulevard and Highway 156, and replace it with an interchange that includes three roundabouts and one mile of a multiuse path. A plan to expand Highway 156 from two lanes to four up to Highway 101 is in the works, but a timeline is uncertain.

According to TAMC, utility relocation for the interchange project is expected to begin in the fall. Recently, I noticed some land clearing and heavy equipment being staged in the area, so I asked Javier Hernandez, principal transportation engineer with TAMC, if that was for the project. Indeed, Hernandez confirms that equipment is on site to begin relocating utilities. 

Construction bids for the interchange itself will be advertised in September. A contract could be awarded in January, with major construction beginning in May.

If all goes to plan, TAMC and Caltrans will bring the big scissors and ribbon to celebrate the opening of the interchange in spring 2029.

The next couple of years could cause some headaches for North County commuters, as there will likely be multiple projects underway simultaneously. While a project on Merritt Street is nearing its final stages, construction could begin in 2027 for a roundabout at the intersection of Castroville Boulevard and San Miguel Canyon Road.

But with a growing number of vehicles traveling through the area, these projects should help relieve the gridlock that happens on a daily basis. A couple of years of inconvenience will pay off in the long run.