Morro Bay to host Ironman triathlon this weekend. How will it affect traffic?

A lane on Highway 1 and a handful of key roads in Morro Bay will be closed for up to 14 hours on Sunday for the Ironman 70.3 triathlon event.

Participants in the triathlon will swim 1.2 miles, bike 56 miles, then run 13.1 miles as part of the event.

At 6 a.m., the athletes will jump into the Morro Bay Harbor and swim along the coastline.

Then, they will hop onto their bikes and take off on a 56-mile loop between Morro Bay and Cayucos.

The bike route starts at Morro Rock Parking Lot. From there, the cyclists then ride down the Embarcadero to the Atascadero Road on-ramp to Highway 1.

The cyclists will travel northbound up the highway to Cayucos, ride through the heart of the town, then hop on southbound Highway 1 using the 13th Street on-ramp. The athletes then will exit the highway into Morro Bay on Atascadero Road and finish the loop at Coleman Drive.

Finally, the athletes run a loop starting at Morro Rock, heading down the Embarcadero through Morro Bay State Park to the finish line on Front Street.

“On Sunday, be aware,” Morro Bay Police Chief Amy Watkins said. “There’s going to be a lot of traffic cones. There’s going to be a lot of signs. There’s going to be a lot of officers out to assist people.”

Officers from police departments in Morro Bay, Paso Robles, Atascadero, Pismo Beach, Arroyo Grande, Grover Beach and Santa Maria, along with officers from Cuesta College, the San Luis Obispo County Sheriff’s Office and the California Department of Fish and Wildlife will direct traffic through the city, according to Watkins. The California Highway Patrol will assist traffic on Highway 1, she said.

Watkins recommended that Morro Bay residents schedule extra time into their Sunday commutes to accommodate for traffic.

“Say you attend church at 10 a.m. on Sunday morning. If it normally takes you 10 minutes to get to church, maybe give yourself double the time,” Watkins said. “We’ll get you there, it just might take an extra few minutes.”

One lane, shoulder to close on Highway 1 for cyclists

Cyclists participating in the triathlon will bike along a portion on Highway 1 on Sunday morning. Law enforcement will close one lane of the highway from Morro Bay to Cayucos to protect the athletes, but the remaining lanes will remain open.

Officers will close the No. 2 lane of northbound Highway 1 from Atascadero Road to just north of Cayucos near the Estero Bluffs, Watkins said.

Meanwhile, on southbound Highway 1, the No. 2 lane will be closed from the 13th Street on-ramp to Atascadero Road.

The shoulders of northbound and southbound Highway 1 will be closed between San Simeon and Cayucos, Watkins said.

These closures will last from about 4 a.m. to 3 p.m. on Sunday.

Signs, traffic cones and CHP officers will direct traffic through the lane closures. Drivers should expect traffic delays between five and 15 minutes, Watkins said.

“There shouldn’t be a whole lot of congestion,” she said. “There might just be some inconvenience for a mile or so.”

Roads closed in Morro Bay

The city of Morro Bay will close 14 roads on Sunday to protect athletes participating in the triathlon, according to the Ironman website.

The Embarcadero from Beach Street to Coleman Street, the north side of Atascadero Road from Embarcadero to Main Street, and the west side of Embarcadero from Coleman Drive to Atascadero Road will be closed from about 3 a.m. to 2 p.m.

Meanwhile, 11 roads will be closed from about 3 a.m. to 5 p.m. The list includes:

• Embarcadero from Beach Street to Pacific Street

• Front Street from Embarcadero to Embarcadero

• Harbor Street from Embarcadero to Market Avenue

• Pacific Street from Embarcadero to Market Avenue

• The south side of Pacific St from Market Avenue to Morro Avenue

• The west side of Morro Ave from Pacific Street to Olive Street

• The south side of Olive Street from Morro Avenue to Main Street

• Main Street from Olive Street to Bayshore Drive

• The west side of Bayshore Drive from Main Street to Main Street

• Main Street from Bayshore Drive to State Campgrounds

• The south side of Main St from State Campgrounds to Park View Drive

Signs and police officers will be posted throughout the city to guide residents to their destinations through the road closures.

“I don’t want anybody thinking that they can’t get somewhere,” Watkins said. “You just might need to take another street instead of the normal one that you take.”

Morro Bay parking lot closures

The dirt parking lot behind the Morro Bay Maritime Museum will be closed from Friday at 5 a.m. to Monday at 5 p.m. for the triathlon’s equipment staging station, Watkins said. The museum and the nearby paved triangle parking lot will remain open.

The 714 parking lot at the intersection of Embarcadero and Pacific Street will serve as the Ironman Expo Center, Watkins said. This parking lot closed on Monday and will reopen the following Monday at 5 p.m.

A portion of the Morro Rock Parking Lot will serve as the transition area for athletes between sections of the race. That portion of the parking lot will be closed from Monday to Monday, but the rest of the lot will be open to the public and through traffic until Saturday evening, Watkins said.

The finish line of the triathlon will be located on Front Street between Dorn’s Breakers Cafe and Sun-N-Buns Bakery, Watkins said. Street parking will be prohibited from Front Street to Harbor Street to Embarcadero from Friday at 5 a.m. to Sunday at 5 p.m. while the finish line is built, used during the race and then dismantled.

The businesses on those streets will remain open to pedestrians, according to Watkins.

Parking will also be prohibited on Coleman Drive from the Morro Rock Parking Lot to the Embarcadero from Friday at 7 p.m. to Sunday at 2 p.m.

The Coleman Park parking lots will be closed from Saturday at 5 a.m. to Sunday at 5 p.m., as it will be used as the starting point for the swimming portion of the triathlon.

Watkins said parking will remain available in downtown Morro Bay. She recommended that residents and tourists park in the downtown area, then walk to businesses on the Embarcadero.

“Morro Bay is open,” she said. “Instead of driving your car down the Embarcadero, maybe park your car up top and take a stroll down.”