When the Mariposa Trail Bridge was hit with yet another landslide in January, rail service between Orange County and San Diego County was shut down. Shortly after, Caltrans issued a state of emergency to get $10 million in funding for restoration.
Then, a record-breaking storm hit Southern California over three days.
So how did the Mariposa Trail Bridge fair with the storm? San Clemente Mayor Victor Cabral told L.A.’s Morning News staffers went to check it out Wednesday morning.
“There was very little movement on the Mariposa Bridge,” he said. “We got a break. As you know, all this depends on where the rain falls. We had heavy rains in isolated areas. But luckily at the Mariposa Bridge side, we didn't have that.”
He noted the bridge will cost about $10 million to repair.
“They went out and graded early on. It slipped for a week…but it's stable,” he said. “ I think the cover has protected it. Both the neighbor(s) upstairs and OCTA have done a great job of protecting the hillside this week.”
Cabral also said he would speak with the homeowners living above the station to get an idea of how to “protect these bluffs in the future.”
“I know there's been some issues with drainage, and we're looking at that, but it will be an ongoing issue,” he said. “Our bluffs are not very secure and we're gonna need to do all we can in advising homeowners how to protect their bluff.”
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