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Car Forum / Driving, Maintenance, Tuning / Driving / November 2009Plan to widen CA-91 - L.A. Times Reprint
One of California's toughest commutes getting relief with 91 Freeway widening November 2, 2009 | 5:25 pm One of Southern California’s toughest commutes is about to get somewhat easier. Officials Tuesday will break ground on a $59.5-million project to widen the eastbound 91 Freeway with the hopes of easing congestion for commuters along the heavily traveled stretch between Orange and Riverside counties. The section through the Santa Ana Canyon has long been considered one of the worst freeway bottlenecks in the nation, connecting bedroom communities in the Inland Empire to job centers in Orange and Los Angeles counties. The roughly 6-mile-long project will run from the 241 Freeway, a toll road, to the 71 Freeway and will add one lane to the four existing eastbound lanes, excluding two express lanes. “The 91 corridor, that’s been one of the toughest puzzles to solve,” said Peter Buffa, chairman of the Orange County Transportation Authority. “There’s 300,000 cars traveling that route each day.” He said the agency also hopes to eventually widen the freeway in both directions from the 55 Freeway to the 241 toll road. Commuters in that area got another boost this week with today's grand opening of new lanes on the 241 toll road, another route channeling Inland Empire commuters into Orange County. The “Fast Trak” toll lanes run through the Windy Ridge toll plaza. Some 50,000 commuters pass through that plaza each weekday and the new lanes on the 241 Freeway are supposed to ease traffic flow to and from the 91 Freeway, said Jennifer Seaton of the Transportation Corridor Agencies. Seaton said that stretch of the 91 Freeway east of the 241 Freeway can be “very, very congested” and that the backup affects commuters using the toll road. Transportation officials have been talking for decades about how to ease the commute between the Inland Empire and Orange County. More than a decade ago, officials opened toll lanes along a portion of the 91 Freeway, offering less congestion for commuters willing to pay the price. The 241 toll road, which runs from the 91 into South Orange County, was also designed to improve the commute. The 91 runs through a narrow canyon amid several mountain ranges, making it hard to build additional freeways between the Inland Empire and Orange County. In recent years, planners have talked about tunneling 11.5 miles through the Cleveland National Forest to build a new route, but those plans are still very much in the conceptual stages. Orange County transportation officials said the bulk of the 91 widening project, $47.9 million, is being funded with federal stimulus dollars and local agencies. -- Ari B. Bloomekatz Last time on ca.driving, larry_scholnick <larry_scholnick@yahoo.com> said: >One of California's toughest commutes getting relief with 91 Freeway >widening [quoted text clipped - 7 lines] >commuters along the heavily traveled stretch between Orange and >Riverside counties. They have been adding lanes in that area every few years since I've lived here (1995) but the traffic just gets worse and worse. It's gotten so bad that traffic on the 241 toll road that feeds the 91 also backs up for several miles during the afternoon rush. I tell ya, I'd rather live in a carboard box in Orange County than have to drive on the 91. I do confess, however, that I wouldn't mind if they built some direct connector ramps betweenthe 241 and the 91 Express Lanes. Those would be especially nice when taking an out-of-town trip. :) > Last time on ca.driving, larry_scholnick <larry_scholn...@yahoo.com> > said: [quoted text clipped - 23 lines] > connector ramps betweenthe 241 and the 91 Express Lanes. Those would > be especially nice when taking an out-of-town trip. :) Actually, the 91 commute has gotten *A LOT* better in recent months, I've noticed. More often than not, once you get outside of Corona, it's generally free-flow in the mornings going westbound, until the last mile approaching the 55. Blame the housing market crash and rising unemployment for the improvement. The afternoons are a bit more unpredictable, but there are now days where it only takes 30 minutes during peak hours to drive from the 55 to I-15. Friday's can still be tough, but I'll take a 1 hour drive over 2+ hours, compared to this time, last year. Another positive; northbound CA 241 just received a 4th northbound lane from the toll plaza, up to CA 91. Yay. :-) -Brent Last time on ca.driving, Brent Jonas <brentrjonas@aol.com> said: >Actually, the 91 commute has gotten *A LOT* better in recent months, >I've noticed. More often than not, once you get outside of Corona, >it's generally free-flow in the mornings going westbound, until the >last mile approaching the 55. Blame the housing market crash and >rising unemployment for the improvement. Enjoy it while it lasts. :) >Another positive; northbound CA 241 just received a 4th northbound >lane from the toll plaza, up to CA 91. Yay. :-) They did that for a different reason: morons driving in the left lane (i.e. the "cool" lane) until they suddenly realize there's a toll plaza coming up, at which point they cut across 3 lanes of traffic to get to the cash lanes. I wonder if carving a new lane out of the median is going to improve this situation or make it worse? ISTM that all the "cool" people will still ride in the "cool" lane, and adding one more lane simply means that there will be one more lane of traffic for these bozos to cut across. >I do confess, however, that I wouldn't mind if they built some direct >connector ramps betweenthe 241 and the 91 Express Lanes. Those would >be especially nice when taking an out-of-town trip. :) Never figured out why they haven't done this yet (it wouldn't be cheap because of the height of the flyovers, but none of the options they have in front of them are particularly inexpensive, and at least this builds within existing ROW). -- Cameron Kaiser * ckaiser@floodgap.com * posting with a Commodore 128 Computer Workshops: http://www.armory.com/%7Espectre/cwi/ Floodgap Systems: http://www.floodgap.com/ personal page: http://www.cameronkaiser.com/ Last time on ca.driving, Cameron Kaiser <ckaiser@floodgap.com> said: >>I do confess, however, that I wouldn't mind if they built some direct >>connector ramps betweenthe 241 and the 91 Express Lanes. Those would [quoted text clipped - 4 lines] >in front of them are particularly inexpensive, and at least this builds >within existing ROW). The existing ramps are ENORMOUS! The marginal cost of extending portions of those ramps across the 91 to the Express Lanes couldn't have been that much. That they didn't do it is truly baffling > >I do confess, however, that I wouldn't mind if they built some direct > >connector ramps betweenthe 241 and the 91 Express Lanes. Those would [quoted text clipped - 10 lines] > Floodgap Systems:http://www.floodgap.com/ > personal page:http://www.cameronkaiser.com/ This has been studied, and I believe it's one of the long-term goals to build these ramps. It could be years and years before it finally happens, though. > I tell ya, I'd rather live in a carboard box in Orange County than > have to drive on the 91. My wife grew up in Apple Valley, but I've only lived here since 2003. When I agreed to come out here, all I could think is "OMG, I'm going to get stuck in traffic at all hours of the day." The 91 and the 405 are the only freeways where this is actually true. :)  SignatureSteve Sobol, Victorville, California, USA sjsobol@JustThe.net > In article <1b67f5le6c3a5k4n28nv5gbppota6ij...@4ax.com>, > scottenazt...@yahoo.com says... [quoted text clipped - 12 lines] > Steve Sobol, Victorville, California, USA > sjso...@JustThe.net Or the 101 thru Hollywood. Actually, I-110 eastbound is becoming a never-ending, stop-and-go mess, starting as early as 1 p.m. It was never like that in the past, but this trend has been continuing for about the past couple of years now. In article <40e679c1-353c-400c-9232- 15389d4dd19a@k17g2000yqb.googlegroups.com>, brentrjonas@aol.com says... > Or the 101 thru Hollywood. I've driven the 101 through Hollywood, mid-morning, and it hasn't been too bad, but the last time I drove that freeway was months and months ago. Actually, I-110 eastbound is becoming a > never-ending, stop-and-go mess, starting as early as 1 p.m. It was > never like that in the past, but this trend has been continuing for > about the past couple of years now. 110 eastbound? SignatureSteve Sobol, Victorville, California, USA sjsobol@JustThe.net > In article <40e679c1-353c-400c-9232- > 15389d4dd...@k17g2000yqb.googlegroups.com>, brentrjo...@aol.com says... [quoted text clipped - 16 lines] > Steve Sobol, Victorville, California, USA > sjso...@JustThe.net 105 eastbound. :-) > > In article <1b67f5le6c3a5k4n28nv5gbppota6ij...@4ax.com>, > > scottenazt...@yahoo.com says... [quoted text clipped - 17 lines] > never like that in the past, but this trend has been continuing for > about the past couple of years now. When I used to commute from Vista to Burbank (15 years ago), I'd find the 5 NB in OC jammed at 2:00AM sometimes. Silly me, thinking there'd be no traffic then. Drunks and construction are a bad mix. jg -- @home.com is bogus. Who could it be? http://www.signonsandiego.com/news/2009/nov/06/identity-driver-lakeside-fatal-st ill-unknown/ > > > In article <1b67f5le6c3a5k4n28nv5gbppota6ij...@4ax.com>, > > > scottenazt...@yahoo.com says... [quoted text clipped - 26 lines] > @home.com is bogus. > Who could it be?http://www.signonsandiego.com/news/2009/nov/06/identity-driver-lakesi... After driving the 5 between the 91 and the 605 one fine sunny afternoon, I decided I was never, ever putting a car on that stretch of road until the 10-laning is complete. -Jonathan Last time on ca.driving, Jonathan L <jlippard@gmail.com> said: >After driving the 5 between the 91 and the 605 one fine sunny >afternoon, I decided I was never, ever putting a car on that stretch >of road until the 10-laning is complete. Ah, yes - the last stretch of 6-lane freeway in Urban California. If it weren't such a pain to drive it would almost be nostalgic. :) Notice how the narrow 6-lane section begins at the LA county line? It's a dramatic illustration of just how important other sources of funding besides the fuel tax have become. However, even after they finish expanding it it will still be a gridlocked nightmare. The NB 5 leading into the Orange Crush is a parking lot every morning nowadays, with the backup stretching back to around Jeffrey Road. The amazing thing is, that same stretch of road is also a parking lot in the evenings. If everybody is going north in the morning, you'd think the southbound side would be the side backing up, but it's that damned Orange Crush (which they just finished revamping, BTW) that's the real problem. The same problem exists with the section north of the LA County line: it's called the East LA Interchange. :) > Last time on ca.driving, Jonathan L <jlipp...@gmail.com> said: > [quoted text clipped - 18 lines] > the section north of the LA County line: it's called the East LA > Interchange. :) Looking at the map it appears that the Channel Islands and Catalina were once part of the Mainland US eons, ago. So I-5 won't exist in 100,000 years. > Last time on ca.driving, Jonathan L <jlipp...@gmail.com> said: > [quoted text clipped - 4 lines] > Ah, yes - the last stretch of 6-lane freeway in Urban California. If > it weren't such a pain to drive it would almost be nostalgic. :) The first time I drove it I was heading south at about 1:30AM. No problems then, but I was surprised it was only 6 lanes. It would be an interesting look at history in the day, since it's basically the original construction, except where they converted the shoulder for an auxiliary lane. > Notice how the narrow 6-lane section begins at the LA county line? > It's a dramatic illustration of just how important other sources of > funding besides the fuel tax have become. Tthe first time I drove it during the daytime (heading north), I described it afterwards as "once you get north of the 91, the 5 starts losing lanes faster than Phil Collins lost his hair." I got some chuckles from that. > However, even after they finish expanding it it will still be a > gridlocked nightmare. The NB 5 leading into the Orange Crush is a [quoted text clipped - 6 lines] > the section north of the LA County line: it's called the East LA > Interchange. :) I recall driving through the Orange Crush several times while it was under construction, and even though this was before I knew too much about LA freeways I was wondering if it'd really make a substantial difference. My only thought when in and around the East LA interchange is what the heck they're going to do when the whole thing starts hitting end-of-life. As for the evening jams on NB 5, I've noticed a similar phenomenon in Denver along the T-REX segment of 25: heading north in the afternoon is usually worse than heading south, even though downtown still has more jobs than the Denver Tech Center. I suspect many people working in DTC are commuting from the north suburbs or Denver proper, and I wouldn't be surprised if a good number of people commute south into Orange County each day for work and then go back. The irony for me is that after being on the 710 only a few times, and as a passenger to boot, I swore I'd never ever be on that freeway again, period--but the next time I had to drive from OC to points north, I was perfectly willing to engage in the truck roller derby on Mad Max-style pavement. -Jonathan >The irony for me is that after being on the 710 only a few times, and >as a passenger to boot, I swore I'd never ever be on that freeway >again, period--but the next time I had to drive from OC to points >north, I was perfectly willing to engage in the truck roller derby on >Mad Max-style pavement. The 710 is a disaster w/r/t surfacing. You'd think they could come up with some ARRA funds for that, but no, they're doing CA 62 east of US 95. -- Cameron Kaiser * ckaiser@floodgap.com * posting with a Commodore 128 Computer Workshops: http://www.armory.com/%7Espectre/cwi/ Floodgap Systems: http://www.floodgap.com/ personal page: http://www.cameronkaiser.com/ > >The irony for me is that after being on the 710 only a few times, and > >as a passenger to boot, I swore I'd never ever be on that freeway [quoted text clipped - 4 lines] > The 710 is a disaster w/r/t surfacing. You'd think they could come up > with some ARRA funds for that, but no, they're doing CA 62 east of US 95. Ah. Good thing tey're using ARRA funds for a road that will actually get some traffic. Wow, all of the tumbleweeds rolling across that part of CA 62 must have a horrible negative impact on the road surface... SignatureSteve Sobol, Victorville, California, USA sjsobol@JustThe.net Last time on ca.driving, Cameron Kaiser <ckaiser@floodgap.com> said: >>The irony for me is that after being on the 710 only a few times, and >>as a passenger to boot, I swore I'd never ever be on that freeway [quoted text clipped - 3 lines] > >The 710 is a disaster w/r/t surfacing. Gee, do you think that might be due to all the pounding it takes from TRUCKS going to/from the ports? ;) > >The irony for me is that after being on the 710 only a few times, and > >as a passenger to boot, I swore I'd never ever be on that freeway [quoted text clipped - 4 lines] > The 710 is a disaster w/r/t surfacing. You'd think they could come up > with some ARRA funds for that, but no, they're doing CA 62 east of US 95. Man, in 1980 I remember riding a small moto with knobby tires up the 110 (I think before it was called that), scary all over the place with the newly grooved surfacing. It was either that or frickin' Vermont, Sepulveda to 6th... jg -- @home.com is bogus. http://www.autoweek.com/article/20091116/carnews/911169992&saxoedajax=1&ajaxrequ estuniqueid=125839408211093/car-pictures&template=photo > > Last time on ca.driving, Jonathan L <jlipp...@gmail.com> said: > [quoted text clipped - 53 lines] > > -Jonathan The pavement along I-710 has been substantially improved along many stretches, as a part of a 5-year plan by CalTrans to make this one of the smoothest freeways in L.A. along its entire length. The rubberized asphalt sections are great. >>> Last time on ca.driving, Jonathan L <jlipp...@gmail.com> said: >> [quoted text clipped - 58 lines] > the smoothest freeways in L.A. along its entire length. The > rubberized asphalt sections are great. Yes, it is very, very smooth, I just wish Caltrans would clean up the graffiti on the structures and replace the signage to current standards. It will be interesting to see how long the pavement remains smooth. I would suspect it will suffer the same fate as many asphalt coated freeways in urban areas with very heavy truck traffic.... it will get rutted and it will need to be resurfaced. NYers who know the Cross Bronx Expy will know what I mean..... Ralph Last time on ca.driving, Ralph Herman <rlaherman@earthlink.net> said: >> The pavement along I-710 has been substantially improved along many >> stretches, as a part of a 5-year plan by CalTrans to make this one of [quoted text clipped - 8 lines] >urban areas with very heavy truck traffic.... it will get rutted and it will >need to be resurfaced. I sincerely hope they come up with a formulation that works, because I am a MAJOR fan of rubberized asphalt. They repaved a section of the 5 near my house with that stuff a few years ago, and it has made a SIGNIFICANT difference in the noise levels. I want *every* freeway to be paved with it. |
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