Caltrans seeking public comment on removing old pedestrian bridge in Los Olivos

By Santa Ynez Valley Star Staff · Tue Mar 17 2020

Staff Report

Caltrans District 5 is accepting public comments on a proposal to remove the Alamo Pintado Creek Pedestrian Bridge adjacent to Foxen Canyon Road and Railway Avenue in Los Olivos. The virtual meeting will be held from 5 - 7 p.m.on Tuesday, Sept. 22. 

The Alamo Pintado Creek Pedestrian Bridge was constructed in 1912. In 1971, a new bridge structure—Alamo Pintado Creek Bridge (bridge number 51-0076Y)—was built upstream of the existing structure. The new bridge was built on a new alignment 40 feet upstream from the original structure. At that time, local citizens contacted the State to leave the 1912 structure so it could be used as a pedestrian/equestrian trail bridge. Concrete footing encasements were built around the pile caps of the existing structure. However, these encasements eventually became exposed and undermined.

Today, the old Alamo Pintado Creek Pedestrian Bridge is used by pedestrians, bicyclists, and equestrians. Critical scour of the pile and pier foundation has caused settlement of the bridge deck. A bridge inspection on September 28, 2011 was used to prepare a Bridge Needs Report dated March 29, 2012. The report determined the abandoned bridge is no longer stable with respect to gravity load, and the bridge is sinking slowly at the supports. In the inspection report, recommendations were made to retrofit the bridge or simply remove the bridge. Since those recommendations were made, it has been determined that this area of Alamo Pintado Creek is designated as a floodway, which means the channel capacity cannot be reduced. Retrofitting the substructure would require constructing foundation elements within the channel, which would affect the hydraulic capacity of the creek.

The project would remove the abandoned Alamo Pintado Creek Pedestrian Bridge (bridge number 51-0076Y), remove the retaining wall next to the bridge, and place rock slope protection in that area. The bridge superstructure would be removed from above the creek, while the piers and foundation portion would be removed from below. Minor grading and embankment restoration would also be necessary within the proposed construction easement.

This project contains a number of standardized project measures that are used on most, if not all, Caltrans projects and were not developed in response to any specific environmental impact resulting from the proposed project.

Meeting Format: