Work on Highway 101 from Carpinteria to Summerland is shifting gears.
The Carpinteria City Council was debriefed Monday night about the state of the project involved with an area that's one of the most congested freeway areas in the state.
The current phase of the project, which involves the widening of bridges and fixing on-ramps and off-ramps will be completed in March.
Preliminary work on widening the freeway by adding one lane in each direction will begin in mid-January and escalate in mid-April.
In addition to the new lanes and ramps, there will be overpasses and bike lanes, as well as sound walls and landscaping.
The $400 million cost of the project is being paid for by Senate Bill 1 and Santa Barbara County's Measure A sales tax.
