For AI agents

Cars & Coast is a live map of the Monterey Bay coast. Our MCP server lets an AI assistant look up events, Highway 1 status, weather, surf, photo spots and cameras on behalf of the person it is helping, and hand them a link to the matching page on the map. It is free, and read-only apart from the itinerary maps an agent builds (see below).

Endpoint

Get a key

You can call the tools anonymously to try them, at a lower rate limit. To get your own limit and have your traffic attributed to you, call the register_agent tool once:

register_agent(
  agent_name:    "Trip helper",
  operator:      "Example Co",
  contact_email: "ops@example.com",
  platform:      "claude | chatgpt | cursor | custom"
)
→ { "agent_id": "…", "api_key": "…" }

The key is shown once and only a hash is stored, so save it. Send it on every later request as Authorization: Bearer <key>. If your client cannot set headers, pass it as the optional api_key argument of any tool. The whoami tool shows your record and today's usage.

Connect a client

claude mcp add --transport http carsandcoast https://carsandcoast.com/mcp
# with your key:
claude mcp add --transport http carsandcoast https://carsandcoast.com/mcp \
  --header "Authorization: Bearer YOUR_API_KEY"

{
  "mcpServers": {
    "carsandcoast": {
      "command": "npx",
      "args": ["-y", "mcp-remote", "https://carsandcoast.com/mcp",
               "--header", "Authorization: Bearer YOUR_API_KEY"]
    }
  }
}

{
  "mcpServers": {
    "carsandcoast": {
      "url": "https://carsandcoast.com/mcp",
      "headers": { "Authorization": "Bearer YOUR_API_KEY" }
    }
  }
}

Any other MCP client that supports remote Streamable HTTP servers works with the URL above. Client menus change; if a step has moved, look for "add MCP server" or "custom connector".

Tools

Every answer is compact JSON that includes a page_url for the human, the source of the data, and fetched_at / stale when the underlying feed is cached. Safety-relevant tools (fire, Highway 1, ocean, photo spots) add a line telling the reader to verify with the official source we link.

Build a weekend map for your human

A registered agent can turn a plan into a map its human texts to the friends meeting them here. Call create_itinerary with your key, then give the human the returned share_url exactly as written.

create_itinerary({
  "title": "Car Week crew, Saturday",
  "made_for": "the Nguyen family",
  "days": [{"date": "2026-11-07", "label": "Saturday"}],
  "stops": [
    {"ref_type": "place", "ref_id": "<slug from search_places>", "start_time": "09:30",
     "is_meetup": true, "note": "Coffee first, meet by the entrance"},
    {"ref_type": "pin", "title": "Lunch on the wharf", "lat": 36.6025, "lng": -121.8933,
     "day": "2026-11-07", "start_time": "12:30", "dwell_min": 60}
  ]
})

The human opens a map with numbered stops grouped by day, start times, notes, drive times between stops and the meeting point marked "Meet here". Friends open the same link with no login. Keep the edit_token from the answer (it is shown once) to change the map later with add_stops or update_itinerary; the key that made it can always edit it.

• Dates and times are local Pacific. Up to 30 stops and 4 days, 20 new maps per day per key.
• Plain text only: links and markup are removed, and religious content is rejected. A stop inside the Bixby Bridge no-stopping zone is rejected.
• Agent-made maps are never featured, are kept out of search engines and the maps gallery, and can be taken down with delete_itinerary.

Rate limits

Over the limit you get a structured error saying when to retry. Need more? Write to us.

Terms of use

• Read-only, except itinerary maps you create. The server changes nothing else on the site or for any user. An itinerary is public to anyone with its link, so write only what you would show the people it is for.
• Keep the links. Links we return carry utm_source, utm_medium=mcp and utm_campaign=agent. Please pass them to the person you are helping unchanged. That is how we know agents are useful and keep this free.
• No scraping. Use the tools for questions from real people, not to bulk-copy our data. Do not rotate keys or IP addresses to get around limits.
• Data is as-is. It comes from public sources and our own curation and may be late or wrong. Every answer names its source and age. Say so when you relay it.
• Safety first. Road, fire, surf and tide information can change fast and can be dangerous. Always point people to the official source we link (Caltrans, CAL FIRE, NWS, NOAA) before they travel or enter the water, and respect any no-stopping notice a tool reports.
• We log each call (tool, time, a hash of the arguments, your key) to run the service and count usage. We may block a key that breaks these terms.

Contact

Questions, higher limits, or something broken: hello@carsandcoast.com.