If you have walked the Coast Highway 101 bridge over the San Elijo Lagoon inlet at sunset, which side were you on? According to the San Diego Union-Tribune, most walkers use the western walkway because it faces the ocean, even though it is the narrower of the two. The bridge is now headed for a rehabilitation project, and whether that west walkway gets any wider depends on a funding question more than an engineering one.
Cardiff's other well-loved sunset spot has the same problem. The dirt edge along Cornish Drive near Santa Fe Drive is just as informal and just as worn, and it is just as dependent on how the city defines a repair. In 2026, both landed on the Encinitas City Council's agenda.
A 1934 Bridge Carrying a Modern Commute
The bridge sits just south of the San Elijo State Beach campground. The City of Encinitas project page describes a 200-foot reinforced concrete pile bridge built in 1934 and widened on its western side in 1953. It carries four vehicle lanes, protected bike lanes in both directions, and an ADA sidewalk on the east side. Caltrans structural engineers have inspected it regularly, most recently in 2024, and it carries a sufficiency rating of 60.4 out of 100.
In January 2026, the council awarded a $270,000 contract to Kleinfelder, Inc. to assess all 46 of the city's bridges and draft a 10-year repair plan. That covered nine conventional bridges, 11 culvert structures, and 26 pedestrian-only structures. The results came back in September. Of the conventional road bridges, the 101 crossing at the lagoon was the only one rated "poor." The only other "poor" rating in the city went to a pedestrian bridge over a drainage swale at Leucadia Oaks Park.
That rating reads more alarming than it is. Kleinfelder engineer Kelly Burnell told the council the bridge shows "signs of deterioration," including chipped concrete and rusting rebar, but that "poor doesn't mean unsafe" and that it means the bridge needs repair work. The rating also opens a door. A "poor" status makes the bridge eligible for the Federal Highway Administration's Highway Bridge Program. That program funds rehabilitation or replacement of locally owned bridges when the state finds a bridge in poor condition and important for traffic movement. The full consultant report is posted with the council meeting video and agenda materials for anyone who wants to read the field notes.
Where "Repair" Ends and "Betterment" Begins
The project has been moving for years, even if the work isn't visible from the sidewalk yet:
- 2019: Caltrans staff tell the city the bridge is a good candidate for Highway Bridge Program funding.
- February 2025: The federal government certifies the SANDAG 2025 Regional Transportation Improvement Program, which includes partial design funding for the project starting in the 2025/26 federal fiscal year.
- March 11, 2026: The council awards the design contract to Dokken Engineering.
- September 2026: The citywide assessment rates the bridge "poor," and city staff estimate construction could be about five years away.
As of the city's March 2026 update, the project page lists it as "currently in design." The Union-Tribune explained why the next step takes so long. Encinitas has to work with Caltrans to define the project's scope, and the central question is what counts as "repair" and what counts as "betterment." City Engineering Director Dan Nutter called it "an arduous process."
Repairs would be paid for with grant money the city has heard it will receive, plus about $3.5 million in city matching funds. Improvements like widening the narrow pedestrian walkway fall on the betterment side, and Nutter said Encinitas would pay their full cost.
Councilmember Joy Lyndes represents the Cardiff area that includes the bridge. She said residents will want betterments given how many pedestrians and cyclists cross it every day, and that pairing them with the repair work makes sense. "We're probably never going to have a better opportunity," she said. Bridge rehabilitations happen about once a generation. This one already involves federal design money, a design firm under contract, and a Caltrans scoping conversation. Whether the ocean-side walkway gets wider will likely be settled in that scoping and budget discussion, well before any construction crew shows up.
The Other Sunset Spot on the Council's List
About four months before the bridge report, the council took up a smaller question about another Cardiff sunset habit. The Union-Tribune reported in May that the western edge of Cornish Drive near Santa Fe Drive has long drawn locals and visitors at sundown. On a good evening, at least a dozen vehicles may line the road, and people bring chairs and meet friends there.
Like the bridge walkway, this spot became popular without being designed for it. It isn't an official overlook and has no marked parking. The city does own the dirt strip between Cornish Drive and the row of palms to the west, and city employees noted that this ownership could make the city liable if someone got hurt. Lyndes showed the council photos of deep ruts and gullies in that dirt. She described the risks as twisted ankles for pedestrians and a steep edge that cars struggle with, adding that some vehicles have gone west into the bushes on land owned by the Self-Realization Fellowship.
On May 13, 2026, the council voted 4–1 to have staff refine a cost estimate of roughly $63,000. A council majority said that if the cost held near that figure, the work could happen later this year while the nearby section of Cornish Drive is being repaved. Councilmember Luke Shaffer liked the idea of gravel or decomposed granite but wasn't sure wheel stops were needed. Mayor Bruce Ehlers suggested looking at the gravel used near the Olivenhain Town Council's meeting hall. Councilmember Jim O'Hara voted no. He expected the repair to cost well over $63,000 and to be expensive to maintain over time.
We have not found a public update on the Cornish Drive work since that May vote, so for now it is still a proposal tied to the repaving schedule.
The two projects differ a lot in size but follow the same pattern:
| Hwy 101 bridge, west walkway | Cornish Drive edge near Santa Fe Drive | |
|---|---|---|
| How it became a sunset spot | Ocean views from the narrower sidewalk | Informal roadside pull-off facing the palms and the water |
| What prompted action | 2026 Kleinfelder assessment rated it "poor" | Ruts, gullies, and vehicles sliding off the edge |
| What's on the table | Rehabilitation, with walkway widening as a possible city-funded betterment | Gravel or decomposed granite, possibly wheel stops, about $63,000 |
| Where it stands | In design with Dokken Engineering, construction possibly about five years out | Staff asked to refine the estimate in May 2026, could pair with Cornish Drive repaving |
In both cases, the open decision is whether Encinitas pays to fit the place to how people already use it.
Where the Evening Goes After the Light Fades
The bridge leads straight to the restaurant cluster along South Coast Highway 101 that makes this stretch an evening routine and not only a place to walk. Each of these lists current hours and menus on its own website:
- Pacific Coast Grill, 2526 S Coast Hwy 101, which describes itself as on the sand
- Chart House, 2588 South Coast Highway 101
- Ki's, 2591 S. Coast Hwy, with online ordering and reservations
- Cardiff Beach Bar @ Tower 13, 2633 S Coast Hwy 101
- Las Olas, which says it has served Cardiff by the beach since 1981 and is open seven days a week
Outdoor seating across town also depends on a temporary arrangement. The Coast News reported in June that Encinitas extended temporary outdoor dining through July 1, 2027 while it works on a permanent ordinance, which was expected back before the council in late 2026 or early 2027. The city counted 22 private parking spaces in Cardiff converted to outdoor dining and pointed to the area around The Shanty as an example of where shared parking might work.
Inland, Cardiff 101 has an earlier way to spend an evening on the calendar. Music in Glen Park runs Tuesday, October 20, 2026, from 4:30 to 5:30 p.m. with Jesse Ray Smith and local makers. The group suggests takeout or delivery from Besta Wan, Seaside Market, Best Pizza & Brew, and Trattoria Positano. Small Business Saturday follows on November 28, 2026, with deals at more than 20 Cardiff businesses and the annual poster giveaway with purchase. You can find more about the area on our Cardiff-by-the-Sea neighborhood page and the broader Encinitas guide.
If you own near this stretch of Coast Highway 101 or Cornish Drive and want to talk through how a multi-year bridge project or roadside work could fit with your own plans for your home, Roy Wannamaker and Epic Real Estate and Management are glad to walk through the timeline with you, with no pressure. Let's Connect.
