Long-term lane closure on Highway 101 in Ventura ushers in era of jams

Staff reports
Updated ·2 min read
A long-term pipe replacement project on northbound Highway 101 in Ventura started Friday, Sept. 22, 2023, closing one of three lanes and backing up traffic through the corridor. The closure is expected to last until spring 2024.
A long-term pipe replacement project on northbound Highway 101 in Ventura started Friday, Sept. 22, 2023, closing one of three lanes and backing up traffic through the corridor. The closure is expected to last until spring 2024.

Northbound Highway 101 jammed in Ventura? Welcome to the new normal.

A long-term project to replace an underground pipe has closed one of three northbound lanes until spring 2024, the California Department of Transportation, or Caltrans, said on Friday, the first day of the closure.

The effort will impact a half-mile stretch south of California Street. The left lane will be closed. Northbound motorists will use the two right lanes.

The closure will run 24 hours a day, seven days a week, as weather and other conditions allow, said Jim Medina, a spokesman for the agency.

Traffic backs up on northbound Highway 101 in Ventura on Friday as one lane is closed for underground pipe repairs. The lane closure is expected to last until spring 2024.
Traffic backs up on northbound Highway 101 in Ventura on Friday as one lane is closed for underground pipe repairs. The lane closure is expected to last until spring 2024.

The pipe replacement is meant to remedy the perpetually wet spot along the center median that sometimes seeps into the left traffic lane. Workers will dig up pavement to reach the clogged or broken pipe. Burns Pacific Construction Inc. of Thousand Oaks was contracted for the work.

Ventura Police Department Cmdr. Mike Brown said some of the agency's motorcycle officers have slipped on the slick, wet surface while riding through the area.

On Friday, the first day of the project, traffic backed up at times to the junction with Highway 126. On Saturday, similar backups formed on and off as the day wore on.

What's more, northbound motorists sometimes have a second challenge as they continue past Ventura toward the Seacliff interchange near Mussel Shoals. A separate ongoing pavement rehabilitation project on a roughly five-mile stretch has closed one of two northbound lanes most weeknights starting around 7 p.m. until the following morning. Those overnight closures may continue into December, Medina said.

Other periodic ramp and lane closures on the same stretch can impact traffic, as can accidents in areas lined by K-rail with minimal space on roadway shoulders.

Caltrans officials said motorists should expect delays while traveling through the Ventura construction zone.

One of three lanes of northbound Highway 101 in Ventura will be closed for months as workers replace an underground pipe, Caltrans officials said.
One of three lanes of northbound Highway 101 in Ventura will be closed for months as workers replace an underground pipe, Caltrans officials said.

This story may be updated.

This article originally appeared on Ventura County Star: Highway 101 lane closed in Ventura through spring, bringing delays