Caltrans next week will impose 24/7, one-way traffic control using stoplights on Highway 1 near Bodega Bay as construction crews do roadwork.

Traffic had been controlled by flaggers during the day since work began June 7, but Caltrans spokesman Robert Haus said the work “has reached a point where the signalized, one-way traffic control is now necessary. Work is expected to last for five days.

The project involves building a retaining wall along about a 500-foot stretch of Highway 1 just west of Bodega Highway because last winter’s heavy rains left the stretch susceptible to mud and rock slides, Haus said.

Once next week’s portion of the work is completed, Haus said, flaggers will resume guiding traffic during the day until the project is completed in mid-August.

Initially, Caltrans planned to have the short stretch of Highway 1 reduced to one-way, stoplight-control 24/7 for three months, but complaints from Bodega Bay businesses and local politicians prompted Caltrans to use flaggers only during weekdays.