57 Freeway extension: Act 2

 

Good luck on this: extending the 57 Freeway from the 22 to the 405. It's possible, the Times' David Reyes says, but likely to hit political opposition:

Extending the 57 Freeway down the Santa Ana River to connect with the San Diego Freeway in Fountain Valley is "potentially feasible" but would cost an estimated $2 billion, according to a study released Monday. The concept was first proposed decades ago to help alleviate congestion and complete an eight-mile extension of the 57 Freeway that has gone unfinished since the early 1960s. The proposed four-lane section of freeway would be elevated above the river. The route would cut through parts of Anaheim, Orange, Santa Ana, Fountain Valley and Costa Mesa.  Past proposals have focused on routing a six-lane freeway down the riverbed. Its width would cause the highway to encroach on neighborhoods and shopping centers in Santa Ana. Such a project was estimated to cost $1.3 billion in the mid-1980s and has been met with unrelenting political opposition.

Comments

[Tom A.]

Pfft, $2 billion to build a four-lane "parkway?" I think the OCTA would be much wiser to put that money into establishing a light rail network (or at least the start of one) in the long term.