hinders access to some of the most popular places in Big Sur. Caltrans anticipates completing the initial repair work to stabilize the edge of the scenic and precarious ribbon of highway south of the Rocky Creek Bridge by Memorial Day, May 27. Traffic has been reduced to one lane since the the collapse Easter weekend. Big Sur — a 90-mile stretch of coastline between Carmel to the north and San Simeon to the south — is a tourist hot spot all year round but especially between April and”] The highway is closed to general traffic from the north at Palo Colorado to just south of Limekiln State Park. To drive home the point, the Community Association of Big Sur created the “Big Sur Pledge” asking visitors to follow the rules of the road, respect natural resources, camp only where allowed, be fire safe and leave no trace behind. Caltrans Repairs Underway Since the roadway failed on March 30, Caltrans has widened and improved drainage on the northbound shoulder, placed concrete barriers along the centerline to keep workers and convoys safe and installed rock dowels next to the western edge of theKirk Gafill, the president of the Big Sur Chamber of Commerce estimates that the hotels, art galleries, restaurants, parks and shops are losing several hundred thousand dollars a day collectively because of the latest road closure. “The Big Sur community looks forward to a return to normal access from the north during the summer months, which are a critical period for our guest serving businesses, while work carries on to repair road damage due to rock slides on the southern end of Big Sur,’’ said Ryne Leuzinger, president of the board for the Community Association of Big Sur, an organization that focuses on the health, safety, and welfare of residents and visitors. 5 to 7 million people visit the coastal communities annually, pumping hundreds of millions of dollars into the local economy. That portion of the highway is expected to reopen in the early fall. More work to stabilize the roadway along the cliff side is scheduled, Caltrans said. Better drainage at the site is expected to help the road better withstand extreme weather, which is what Caltrans said caused the recent slide in the first place. At Paul’s Slide, crews are preparing for the final alignment of the road, which will also begin in the coming weeks. Because some of the work requires crews to work from a crane basket over the edge of the road, winds can’t be stronger than 25 miles an hour.