San Luis Obispo County is out for bids now on a project to replace numerous guardrails on roads in Cambria and Los Osos.
The so-called “Metal Beam Guardrail Upgrade Project,” is an estimated $826,000 project paid for through the Federal Aid Project of the Federal Highway Administration, which spends gasoline taxes on road projects. Caltrans manages the funding program in California and is overseeing the County’s project.
The project will replace old guardrails with new ones that meet modern State and Federal standards, according to a report from Genaro Diaz, the County’s Project Manager.
“The existing guardrail currently varies between 4 inches and 9 inches below the allowable height of new guardrail standards,” Ruiz said. “This project will improve the safety for motorists in the event of a collision with the guardrail by making the following improvements:
• Install new guardrail 31-inches in height; and,
• Replace existing wood posts with new wood or steel posts.
Several sites in Cambria — on Moonstone Beach Drive, Windsor Blvd., and Charing Lane — are on the list for new guardrails.
Several sites on Los Osos Valley Road east of Los Osos; and on Ramona, Drive, South Bay Blvd., Pismo Avenue and Pecho Road in Los Osos are also slated for new railings.
The County previously spent $422,000 on the design and engineering for the project in previous budgets, and it’s now ready to move to the construction phase.