Businesses, commuters suffer as portions of Hwy 59 stay closed

Several miles of a heavily used highway in Merced County remain closed.

A portion of Highway 59 closed Saturday as the Mariposa Creek flooded again, causing high water levels and flooded roads.

A new business near the closure wants a permanent fix.

Caltrans officials say more than 9,000 cars on average travel just that stretch of highway between Merced and Los Banos.

Since Saturday, all of them have had to add 20 minutes to their route as the road's been closed because of flooding.

Crews have been there all day continuing to clear debris from the creek and road, but they still need to check the bridge before they can reopen the roadway.

Debris is being cleared from the roadway, and it's a promising sight for drivers.

However the portion of the highway is still closed because water levels in Mariposa Creek need to drop.

"One is to protect the structural integrity of the road even though you might not see flooding, water might be high enough that it might be under the pavement, and pushing up against the side of the bridge," says Thomas Lawrence of Caltrans.

Road closure signs start at Mission Avenue, stretching down at least 6 miles to Sandy Mush Road.

Last week, the road reopened on Thursday after the creek flooded, but then closed again two days later.

Nearby business owners say it's time for a permanent fix.

"It is an issue. It's hurting merced. People have to go around. It's hurting the economics of Merced," said Doug Brunner, owner of Central Irrigation.

Central Irrigation , which is less than a mile away from the closure, is having its grand opening as they aim the be a one-stop shop for all things agriculture.

Brunner says they're expecting about 700 people - but the closure is making it difficult for folks to get to his location.

"I've had a lot of people say, 'It's blocked off, how do we get to you?'" he says.

While many drove, one person decided to bypass the closure by flying in.

Cal trans officials are hoping the road is back open by the end of the week, but right now, there's no set date.

"But you can see clouds in the distance, you never know what Mother Nature is going to do. Don't want to say it's going to open at a certain time, and rain compounds the issue," says Thomas Lawrence of Caltrans.

Brunner won't let the closure rain on his celebration, and hopes there aren't any more closures in the near future.

"We're excited for it to be open, we're excited to have people here. Excited for the business and excited to help Merced," he says.

Caltrans officials say once water levels drop, their crews will inspect the bridge before they reopen it to drivers.

Caltrans officials were still working on getting us bridge maintenence information, but weren't able to provide that information in time.

However, they do say that Caltrans engineers and employees are looking into different options on how to improve the bridge, but no concrete solution yet.