When did you last reach Seacliff from the north without taking the State Park Drive exit? For most of the next five months, you won't have a choice.
Starting Monday, November 16, the Santa Cruz County Regional Transportation Commission will close the southbound Highway 1 offramp and the northbound onramp at State Park Drive for about five months. Crews are rebuilding both ramps for the bus-on-shoulder lanes. The other two ramps stay open. So the interchange won't go dark. Through the winter it handles trips toward Watsonville and stops handling trips to and from Santa Cruz.
Two nearby ramps that people use to get around this one are already closed, so from November 16 every trip between Seacliff and the north county will run on local roads.
The Interchange, Ramp by Ramp
Here's how State Park Drive works from November 16 until the overlapping closures start to clear.
| Your trip | Ramp at State Park Drive | The RTC's route instead |
|---|---|---|
| Heading home from Santa Cruz, southbound | Offramp closed | Exit at Rio del Mar Blvd, then take Soquel Dr back, or loop onto the northbound Rio del Mar onramp and exit at State Park Dr |
| Leaving Seacliff for Santa Cruz, northbound | Onramp closed | State Park Dr to Searidge Rd, right on McGregor Dr, then the northbound Park Ave onramp |
| Leaving Seacliff for Watsonville, southbound | Onramp open | Same as always |
| Coming home from Watsonville, northbound | Offramp open | Same as always |
The two open ramps already carry extra traffic from other closures. The RTC's detour for the closed southbound Park Avenue onramp sends drivers down Soquel Drive or McGregor Drive to the southbound State Park Drive onramp. The southbound Rio del Mar detour also uses the northbound State Park Drive offramp as one way back. This winter, the half of the interchange that stays open is also the backup for two other neighborhoods' ramps.
Two Earlier Closures Are Still Running
Two other ramps between Capitola and Aptos closed before this one, and the RTC still lists both as closed in its October 29 update.
- Southbound Park Avenue onramp: closed Sunday, April 19, for about nine months. The southbound side needs a full structural replacement of the roadway, and that's the reason for the longer schedule. Nine months from April 19 lands around mid-January 2027.
- Southbound Bay Avenue offramp: closed August 2 for about four months. Drivers now continue to the southbound Park Avenue offramp, turn left on Park Avenue and follow Soquel Drive back toward Porter Street and Bay Avenue. Four months from August 2 lands around early December.
From November 16 until the Bay Avenue offramp reopens, a southbound driver from Santa Cruz can't exit at Bay Avenue or at State Park Drive. Until the Park Avenue onramp reopens, no one can get on southbound at Park Avenue either. The State Park Drive ramps should be back around mid-April 2027 if the five-month estimate holds. These dates come from the RTC's approximate durations, so it's worth checking the RTC's weekly construction updates before you plan around any of them.
Where the Detours Actually Lead
From the north, the route matters most for the places you reach through the State Park Drive exit.
California State Parks still tells Highway 1 travelers to take the State Park Drive exit and head west through Aptos to Seacliff State Beach. Coming from Santa Cruz this winter, you'll exit at Rio del Mar Boulevard and work back instead. The beach you're driving to has also changed. The day-use area is open. The campground is closed while rebuilding is planned, the SS Palo Alto is closed to visitors, and the damaged pier was removed in 2023. Its recovery plan includes a relocated pedestrian promenade and interim repairs, and the first day-use dune phase is projected for 2028.
Seacliff Village is the small cluster of shops and restaurants along Center Avenue. Aptos Community News names Manuel's Mexican Restaurant and Marianne's Ice Cream among its best-known stops. Manuel's is at 261 Center Avenue. The newest addition nearby is Seacliff Surf & Skate, a family-run shop at 234A Santa Cruz Avenue that sells surf and skate gear and rents beach equipment. It held its grand opening in June, according to Lookout Santa Cruz. This winter will be its first with the State Park Drive interchange half closed.
Leaving Seacliff for Santa Cruz is where the detour adds the most distance. Instead of getting on at State Park Drive, you'll take State Park Drive to Searidge Road, turn right on McGregor Drive and get on northbound at Park Avenue.
Aptos Village Sits Between the Two Detours
The southbound detour has one upside for errands. The RTC's second option after exiting at Rio del Mar Boulevard is to turn left on Soquel Drive and follow it back to State Park Drive. That route takes you right past Aptos Village, which lies on the stretch between State Park Drive and Rio del Mar Boulevard.
If you take the Soquel Drive option, you'll pass these stops:
- New Leaf Community Market, 161 Aptos Village Way
- Cat & Cloud Coffee, 10 Parade Street, Suite A
- Aptos St. Barbeque, 8059 Aptos Street
- Akira, 105 Post Office Drive, Suite D
- Norma Jean's Coffee, 8043 Soquel Drive
- Betty Burgers, 415 Trout Gulch
The Village keeps adding businesses. Lookout's Aptos newsletter reported that Nurvana Aesthetics & Wellness registered on October 19 at 151 Aptos Village Way, #306.
The Parking Lot the Rail Trail Wanted
Another project will also reshape this stretch of Aptos. Its route runs past Trout Gulch Crossing, the small center where Betty Burgers, Norma Jean's and Caroline's thrift store do business.
The RTC's design for Coastal Rail Trail Segment 12, a 1.25-mile stretch from State Park Drive to Rio del Mar Boulevard through Aptos Village, would use part of the land those businesses use for parking. On October 19, a Santa Cruz County Superior Court judge ruled that the RTC does not own that parking area, Lookout Santa Cruz reported. The ruling covers only Trout Gulch Crossing, not the neighboring Bayview Hotel. According to the same report, the RTC is considering next steps that could include acquiring the property rights it needs or appealing. Executive Director Sarah Christensen told Lookout:
"The project is still moving forward. We'll see what the commission wants to do, but this is very fresh and very surprising."
The RTC's Segment 12 project page puts construction near the end of 2027. So the State Park Drive to Rio del Mar corridor you'll be driving all winter has another round of work coming after the highway project wraps up.
What Comes After the Ramps
Phase II of the highway project runs from Bay Avenue and Porter Street to State Park Drive. It includes a new bicycle and pedestrian overcrossing at Mar Vista Drive and a rebuilt Capitola Avenue overcrossing, which is already open. The RTC expects the whole phase to finish in 2027. Phase I between 41st Avenue and Soquel Drive is a good preview of the end product. It finished in spring 2025 with new auxiliary lanes and the Chanticleer Avenue bike and pedestrian overcrossing.
Two Dates on the Calendar
The La Selva Beach Holiday Fair takes over the La Selva Beach Branch Library at 316 Estrella Avenue on Saturday, November 14, starting at 10 a.m. The listing promises more than 50 vendors plus food trucks. That's two days before the State Park Drive ramps close.
The Aptos Village Green Holiday Market and Tree Lighting is Saturday, December 5, at Aptos Village. Check the Aptos Chamber of Commerce for the start time before you go. If you're coming from Santa Cruz, take the Rio del Mar exit and Soquel Drive, which brings you right to the Village.
Detours like these change how a neighborhood works day to day, and our team at E3 Realty follows them closely so our clients know what to expect before they make a move. If you're weighing a home near a busy interchange and want to know how construction schedules affect daily life there, reach out and we'll walk you through it.
