Caltrans has created a weekly newsletter to update anyone anxiously awaiting the reopening of a severely damaged stretch of Highway 84 near Woodside which has been shut down since early March following a 250-foot landslide during a storm.

During a May 19 town hall meeting in Woodside, residents urged the transit authority to reopen the road as soon as possible while critiquing Caltrans for not updating its project page website or communicating updates on the slide repair via other channels. The two-lane road is a vital link between the Coastside and the Peninsula.

At the meeting, Caltrans officials revealed plans for a partial reopening, with one-way traffic control, in late July, according to Caltrans. Full reopening, with two-way traffic, is expected in late October.

"Our crews have been working tirelessly each day, repairing the slope and constructing a retaining structure on State Route 84 near Woodside," Caltrans said on its website.

The damaged area is east of Highway 35, and traffic has been detouring via Old La Honda and Kings Mountain roads. Since Highway 84 closed, Old La Honda Road has carried about three to five times the amount of average daily traffic that it did before the closure, according to vehicle counts collected by the town of Woodside.

Caltrans is currently installing new drainage systems; filling the southwest quadrant slide; and preparing ground stabilization piles.

Caltrans said on Friday, June 2, that work needed to repair the damage includes: repairing the slope and constructing a retaining wall; reconstructing the roadway; repairing drainage systems; and putting erosion control in place.

A presentation from Caltrans on the closure can be viewed on YouTube.

To sign up for the newsletter, email SR84slideupdates@dot.ca.gov.

The project website also has updates at dot.ca.gov.