Last Chance Grade

Last Chance Grade is a section of US Highway 101 in California where landslides have been actively moving and impacting the road for decades. The scenic highway traverses along the California Coastline and winds through Redwood National and State Parks and a UNESCO World Heritage Site. Several possible alternatives to the existing highway were identified and, in 2019, BGC designed and facilitated an Expert-Based Risk Assessment to compare the future risks of ownership of alternative realignments of the highway at Last Chance Grade. BGC also led the development of holographic models for presentation using the Ada Platform software in the Microsoft HoloLens to communicate complex geohazard conditions to the expert panel and public stakeholders. This work led to stakeholders coming to an agreement on alternatives, and a greatly streamlined and less expensive environmental process. BGC supported Caltrans in a value analysis of the alternatives in 2018 and BGC is currently providing independent technical review of geotechnical engineering services for the Last Chance Grade project.