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California HighwaysRoutes 17 through 24 |
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Click here for a key to the symbols used. "LRN" refers to the Pre-1964 Legislative Route Number. "US" refers to a US Shield signed route. "I" refers to an Eisenhower Interstate signed route. "Route" usually indicates a state shield signed route, but said route may be signed as US or I. Previous Federal Aid (pre-1992) categories: Federal Aid Interstate (FAI); Federal Aid Primary (FAP); Federal Aid Urban (FAU); and Federal Aid Secondary (FAS). Current Functional Classifications (used for aid purposes): Principal Arterial (PA); Minor Arterial (MA); Collector (Col); Rural Minor Collector/Local Road (RMC/LR). Note that ISTEA repealed the previous Federal-Aid System, effective in 1992, and established the functional classification system for all public roads.
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From Route 1 near Santa Cruz to Route 280 in San Jose.
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In 1963, Route 17 was defined as "(a) Route 1 near Santa Cruz to Route 101 near Story Road. (b) Route 101 near San Jose to Route 680 near Warm Springs. (c) Route 680 near Warm Springs to Route 580 in Oakland. (d) Route 80 near Albany to the Richmond-San Rafael Bridge Toll Plaza. (e) Point San Quentin to Route 101 near San Rafael. (f) Route 101 near San Rafael to Route 1 near Point Reyes Station." In 1965, sections (a), (b), and (c) were combined, sections (d) and (e) were combined, giving "(a) Route 1 near Santa Cruz to Route 80 in Oakland. (b) Route 80 near Albany to Route 101 near San Rafael via the Richmond-San Rafael Bridge. (c) Route 101 near San Rafael to Route 1 near Point Reyes Station.". In 1984, Chapter 409 trunchated the route significantly, leaving Route 17 as only "from Route 1 near Santa Cruz to Route 280 in San Jose." The portion from Route 280 to Route 80 was renumbered as I-880; and the former (b), Route 80 near Albany to Route 101 near San Rafael, was transferred to I-580. Former (c), Route 101 near San Rafael to Route 1 near Point Reyes Station, was added to Route 251. This latter portion was to have been the "Point Reyes" Freeway. The 1984 act also gave high priority to the improvement of the former (b) as part of I-580. Originally, Route 17 entered San Jose via Bascom Avenue, then continued east via Stevens Creek Boulevard to Race Street, then north on Race Street. At Race and The Alameda (US 101 at the time, now Route 82), Route 17 northbound and US 101 southbound continued co-signed east on The Alameda and West Santa Clara Street past what is now HP Pavillion (San Jose Arena). At Market Street, US 101 turned southbound; Route 17 continued northeast on Santa Clara to 13th Street, at which point it turned northbound on 13th (which became Oakland Road past Bayshore Highway). The segment of I-680 from US 101 to Route 262 was designated as Route 17 when first proposed in 1964. Under the plans, Route 17 would have turned east in San Jose onto what is now I-280, crossed US 101, and then joined with I-680 in Fremont using the present-day I-680 alignment. I-280 would have turned north on present-day I-880 (then signed as Route 17) at Route 17, switched to I-680 at US 101, and then would have joined the proposed Route 17 at Fremont near Route 262. Apparently, Route 17 would have crossed over somewhere at that point to its then-existing routing up to Oakland. On a related note, for a short time Route 17 was placed on what is known as Oakland Road, which runs just east of the present-day I-880 between San Jose and Milpitas. It became Main Street in Milpitas and then met present-day Route 262 in Fremont at Warm Springs Blvd and Mission Blvd. Today's I-880 freeway was just signed as I-680 then. Later on, after the new I-680 alignment was finalized, Oakland Road and Main Street were signed as Route 238, since that portion of Mission Blvd south of the present terminus of Route 238 was signed as Route 238 to Warm Springs. Today's I-880 freeway was signed as Route 17 and Temporary I-680 north of US 101 to the junction of Route 262 and Route 17 and Temporary I-280 south of US 101 to the junction of US 280. Note that Mission Blvd crosses I-680 twice. At the first (northern) crossing it is signed as Route 238 and this is the present terminus of Route 238. At the second (southern) crossing it is signed as a connection to I-880; this is the eastern terminus of (unsigned) Route 262. Also, the city of Milpitas built a new alignment for Main Street, so present-day maps do not show how Oakland Road connected with Mission Blvd in Warm Springs via Main Street. The freeway portion from US 101 was constructed by 1955. With respect to former segment (2), from Route 80 near Albany to Route 101 near San Rafael: The section from the junction of I-80 and I-580 ("McArthur Freeway" or "the Maze") to the interchange at Hoffman Blvd (approximately 3 miles), was signed as I-80 and Route 17. Before the completion of the freeway portion between the Hoffman Blvd/I-80 Interchange to the foot of the San Rafael Bridge, the Route 17 routing was as follows: Hoffman Blvd, to Cutting Blvd, to Standard Ave, and then to the foot of the Richmond-San Rafael bridge.
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There may be a former routing ("Old Santa Cruz Highway") that starts near the Lexington Reservoir (2.2 miles south of the Santa Cruz Avenue Y in Los Gatos), continuing south to Holy City at Route 17 and returning to Route 17 near Glenwood.
Other sections (such as between Route 262 and US 101) date back to the mid-1950s. The section south of US 101 opened around 1960. A 1946 San Jose proposal called for a Route 5 Highway approximately in Route 17's path, with overpasses at the Alameda and San Carlos streets, paralleling Race Street to the east. The "Route 5 freeway" from Los Gatos to Bascom Avenue opened on 4/30/1959. [Thanks to Scott "Kurumi" Oglesby for much of this information] At I-280 (as of 1963 unbuilt, but LRN 239 to the W and LRN 5 to the E), Route 17 became LRN 239 (still signed as Route 17), and continued N to the junction with Bypass US 101 (LRN 68). Before LRN 239 was defined in 1961, it was likely that Route 17 was LRN 5. This route was at one time signed as US 101E, and was likely the original 1926 US 101.
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Scotts Valley Blvd in Scotts Valley
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Per San Jose Mercury News, Saturday, December 16, Route 17 will be receiving a $52 million face-lift between the summit and I-280, with more merge lanes, new ramps and even a tunnel at the interchange with Route 85. These improvements are part of the tax measure approved by Santa Clara County voters in 1996; construction probably will begin in 2001 or 2002 and be completed in 2004. However, the truck passing lanes planned for Santa Cruz County will not be built; there was a STIP amendment as Agenda Item 2.1b.(2) on the January 2001 California Transportation Commission agenda. The deletion of the construction was requietsted by the Santa Cruz County Regional Transportation Commission.
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The largest curve on Route 17 over the Santa Cruz Mountains is named the "Big Moody Curve". It is halfway between the summit (Santa Cruz/Santa Clara County line) and the Alma Fire Station at the Lexington Reservoir near Los Gatos. Moody Creek runs beneath the road. Portions of this route were named "Skyline Blvd" by Resolution Chapter 46 in 1919. The portion of Route 17 in Santa Cruz County south of Glenwood Road, between post-mile 5.91 and post-mile 11.78 is named the "Lieutenant Michael Elvin Walker Memorial Highway". This segment was named in memory of CHP Lieutenant Michael Elvin Walker, Badge No. 9919, who was born on September 19, 1959, in San Francisco. Lieutenant Walker attended Archbishop Riordan High School in San Francisco, and later attended Solano and Los Medanos Community Colleges, San Francisco City College, and San Francisco State University. He and his brother wanted to become CHP officers at an early age, and in October 1981, Lieutenant Walker graduated from the CHP Academy, started his career in Los Angeles, transferred after one year to his hometown of San Francisco, and then transferred in 1983 to Contra Costa County where he remained for 15 years. Lieutenant Walker was interested in pursuing a career in management, worked at the CHP's Golden Gate Communications Center, was promoted to sergeant, transferred to the Cordelia Inspection Facility in Solano County, and was promoted in May 2005, to lieutenant with a position in Santa Cruz. Lieutenant Walker was killed on December 31, 2005, while assisting a disabled motorist traveling southbound on Route 17 just south of Glenwood Drive in Santa Cruz County. The motorist had lost control on a curve on the wet, mountainous roadway and was disabled on the highway embankment, and as Lieutenant Walker retrieved flares from the trunk of his patrol vehicle, another vehicle struck a Caltrans truck that had responded to assist with traffic control, with the impact of the collision forcing the Caltrans truck forward and fatally striking Lieutenant Walker. Named by Senate Concurrent Resolution (SCR) 51, Resolution Chapter 110, on 9/7/2007.
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The bridge over Route 17 near Los Gatos at Lexington Reservoir is named the "Gillian Cichowski Memorial Overcrossing Bridge". It was named by Senate Concurrent Resolution 32, Chapter 70 in 1994. Gillian Cichowski, teacher, active community leader and mother of two children, was killed in February, 1992, while attempting to make a left turn on Route 17 near the Lexington Reservoir. Her death gave impetus to the building of the overpass that replaced the left turn at that intersection.
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[SHC 263.3] From Route 1 near Santa Cruz to Route 9 near Los Gatos.
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[SHC 253.2] From Route 1 near Santa Cruz to Granite Creek Road near Scott' s Valley; and from the south city limits of Los Gatos to Route 280 in San Jose. The entire route was named as part of the Freeway and Expressway system in 1959; the portion from Granite Creek Road to Los Gatos was deleted from the Freeway and Expressway system in 1973 by Chapter 882. According to John David Galt*, Route 17 is constructed as a
freeway from at I-280 (where I-880 ends and becomes Route 17) to southern Los
Gatos, where the first intersection is a dead-end road leading to "The Cats"
restaurant. From there, most of the way over the hill, it's not a freeway;
however, there are three interchanges on this non-freeway section: Bear Creek
Rd., Redwood Estates, and Summit Rd. (unsigned Route 35). The freeway resumes
at the Granite Creek Rd. exit (formerly Santa's Village Road; the one-time
amusement park is now Borland's office space), and from there to Route 1, it's
a freeway (although no longer part of the freeway and expressway system),
except for a short stretch around one intersection.
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Overall statistics for Route 17:
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[SHC 164.11] Between the north urban limits of Santa Cruz and the south urban limits of San Jose.
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The route that would become LRN 17 was first defined in the 1909 First Bond Act as running from Roseville to Nevada City. It remained unchanged, as was codified in the 1935 codes as:
In 1957, Chapter 36 changed the origin from "Roseville" to "[LRN 3] S of Roseville", making the definition: "From [LRN 3] S of Roseville to Nevada City." LRN 3 was the US 40/US 99E junction. From the junction, US 99E (LRN 3; now Route 65) ran N, and US 40 (LRN 17; now I-80) ran NE. At Auburn, LRN 17 split off US 40 and continued N as Route 49. It ran signed as Route 49 N to Route 20 (LRN 15) near Nevada City. |
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Route 18 was supposedly signed with US 91 along the US 91 routing after Pre-1963 Route 14 diverged. This routing was LRN 178 into Lakewood. The route was defined in 1933. Route 18 then ran S cosigned with Route 19 (LRN 168) to the traffic circle in Long Beach (where it coterminated with US 6). LRN 168 was defined in 1931. In the initial routing (before Route 91 ran into Los Angeles) the route followed essentially the same routing into Orange County, then along Glassell St, Center St, Lincoln St, and Carson St. to Route 19 (Cerritos Avenue, at that time).
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[SHC 253.1] Entire route. Added to the Freeway and Expressway system in 1959.
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Overall statistics for Route 18:
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[SHC 164.11] Between the north urban limits of San Bernardino-Riverside and Route 15.
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The route that was to become LRN 18 was roughly defined in 1895 by Chapter 96, with the words "...a free wagon road from the town of Mariposa in Mariposa County to the Yosemite Valley...". However, this act was for surveying the route only, no construction (and that act was repealed in 1935). In 1909, the First Bond Act funded construction from Merced to Mariposa. In 1915, Chapter 396 brought the "Big Oak Flat State Highway" into the system, which also added potential milage to the route. In 1916, the Second Bond Act extended the route to El Portal ("an extension of the Mariposa county state highway lateral to or near the railway station El Portal in Mariposa County;"). In 1929, the route definition was amended by Chapter 537:
By 1935, the route was codified into the highway code as:
The portion from Merced to Yosemite National Park was primary highway. In 1943, Chapter 964 deleted the second segment of the route from the highway system. This left the definition as Merced to Yosemite National Park near El Portal via Mariposa. This was signed as Route 140 between Merced and Yosemite, and was defined in 1909. |
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Route 19 was defined in 1963 to run from Route 1 near Long Beach to Route 164 near Pico Rivera.. Note: The portion of the highway in the City of Long Beach ceased to be a state highway pursuant to the terms of a cooperative agreement in 1998 between the City of Long Beach and the department providing for the relinquishment of that portion of the highway to that city. The Long Beach relinquishment was authorized by AB 2132, Chapter 877, signed September 26, 1998. The authorization for relinquishment of the portion in the City of Downey came from Senate Bill 803, Chapter 172, signed 7/23/1999. In 2003, the legislative definition was changed by AB 535 (8/4/2003, Chapter 177) to acknowledge various relinquishments, and to permit some additional ones. The pre-2003 definition was:
This routing runs along Rosemead and Lakewood Blvds. Note: Route 164 from Route 19 to Route 210 is signed as Route 19. The designation as Route 19 is older, and by the 1950s was along Rosemead until Colorado Blvd.
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Between the initial signage of routes in 1934 and the 1964 renumbering, this routing was signed as Route 19, and was LRN 168 (defined as a state highway route in 1933). Route 19 ran from the traffic circle in Long Beach, N along Cerritos Avenue and San Gabriel Blvd to Foothill Blvd. in Sierra Madre. The portion of Route 19 between Telegraph and Firestone was part of Bypass US 101 in 1942.
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The segment between Route 60 and I-10 in South El Monte is freeway-like, where the left 2 lanes are concrete, the right lane asphalt, speed limit 50, and an exit/entrance ramp just before I-10 at Telstar Ave with a south entrance off of Ramona Road in El Monte. This observation was made by "LA FREEWAY ENTHUSIEST". The SAFETEA-LU act, enacted in August 2005 as the reauthorization of TEA-21, provided the following expenditures on or near this route:
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Submitted for inclusion in the interstate system in 1945; not accepted.
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Overall statistics for Route 19:
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Before the 1964 signed/legislative route alignment, LRN 19 was defined to run:
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The portion of this route that is former US 99 was designated as a "Blue Star Memorial Highway" by Senate Concurrent Resolution 33, Ch. 82 in 1947.
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Overall statistics for Route 20:
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[SHC 164.11] Entire route.
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The routing that was to become [LRN 20] was first defined in 1903 by Chapter 366 as part of the Trinity-Humboldt State Highway, "for the purposes of locating and surveying a proposed highway from a point on the Trinity River near the town of North Fork, thences W-ly down said river to connect with an existing road in Humboldt County." However, this was a survey-only act, and was repealed in 1935. LRN 20 was more properly defined as a route in the state highway system in the 1909 First Bond Act, as running "From Redding to Weaverville". In 1915, it was extended by the Second Bond Act (Chapter 404) from [LRN 1] in Arcata to Douglas City ("...an extension connecting the interior and trunk coast lines in Northern California through Trinity and Humboldt counties by the most direct and practical route;"). In 1933, it was extended further, by the addition of a segment from "[LRN 28] near Redding to Lassen National Park". By 1935, it was codified into the highway code as:
Only the first section was primary highway. In 1957, Chapter 1911 combined these segments into the simpler [LRN 1] near Arcata to Lassen National Park via Weaverville and Redding. In 1959, Chapter 1062 extended the definition to add two segments, making the definition:
In 1963, the "great renumbering" changed the terminus of Section 3 to Termo. Signage along this route was as follows:
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No current routing.
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Route 21 was the former surface street routing that became the new I-680. Part of Route 21 used Pacheco Boulevard, Contra Costa Boulevard, and then Main Street in the Concord/Pleasent Hill area. Other former routings include San Ramon Valley Boulevard between Danville and Dublin, San Ramon Road in Dublin, and Foothill Road from I-580 south to Sunol. For a while, Route 21 and I-680 were cosigned.
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Before the 1964 renumbering, the route for Route 21 begin at what is now the junction of Oakland Road and US 101, running as LRN 5 along Oakland Road, Main Street, and Warm Springs Blvd. This was originally part of Route 17, and when Route 17 was rerouted, becames part of Route 21. It ran as Route 21 to Mission Blvd in Warm Springs. From this point, the route was cosigned as Route 9/Route 21, and continued as LRN 5. It appears this segment was once a planned routing for I-680. It first became part of the state highway system during the first bond act. Route 21 diverged from Route 9 near Mission San Jose, and ran to Route
84 near Sonol. This segment was LRN 108, defined in the 1933 definition of
secondary routes.
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The history of LRN 21 is closely tied to the history of LRN 30. In 1909, the routing that would become LRN 21 was defined in the First Bond Act as running from [LRN 3] near Richvale to Oroville. At the same time, the First Bond Act authorized a route from Oroville to Quincy (this was to become LRN 30). In 1919, the Third Bond Act extended the future LRN 21 to Quincy, and (at least within the Highway Commission, for it wasn't defined legislatively) LRN 30 was transferred to LRN 21. In 1931, Chapter 82 extended LRN 21 to "[LRN 29] near Chats via Quincy and Beckwourth Pass." By 1935, LRN 21 was codified into the highway code as the following two segments:
The portion from [LRN 3] near Richvale to Quincy via Oroville was considered a primary route. In 1957, Chapter 36 changed the definition to combine the two segments, making it from [LRN 3] near Richvale to [LRN 29] near Chats via Quincy and the Beckworth Pass (note the change in routing). This routing started at US 99 (LRN 3) and ran to Oroville. The pre-1964 signage is unclear, but it is presently Route 162. From Oroville, it ran signed as Alt US 40 (now Route 70) to junction with US 395 (LRN 29) near Hallelujah Junction. |
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As defined on July 1, 1964, there was a section (3), from Route 55 near Orange to Irvine Park. Before 1964, this section was LRN 182 (based on number, defined in 1933). This section was deleted in 1965 by Chapter 1372, and had existed since at least 1957.
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This route was signed as Route 22 during the initial state signage of routes in 1934.
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Overall statistics for Route 22:
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Segments (1) and (2) are named the "Garden Grove Freeway". It was named by the State Highway Commission. The first freeway segment opened in 1964; the last in 1967. It was named by location.
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The route that was to become [LRN 22] was defined in the 1909 First Bond Act as running from San Juan Bautista to Hollister. In the 1919 Third Bond Issue, a segment from Pacheco Pass Road into Hollister was added to the route. In 1933, it was extended further by the addition of segments from the "Coast Road near Castroville to [LRN 2] near Prunedale", and from "[LRN 22] near San Juan Bautista to [LRN 2] near The Rocks". In 1935, the route was codified into the highway code as:
The portion from LRN 2 to Hollister was considered a primary route. This definition remained until the 1963 "great renumbering". Signage on the route was as follows:
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Overall statistics for Route 23:
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It is unclear, but the first reference related to a portion of what become LRN 23 may have been in 1901, when Chapter 111 declared part of the Sonora-Mono State Road as a state highwayin particular, the portion commencing east of Sonora, at a point known as Long Barn...and running thence across the summit of the Sierra Nevada Mountains to Bridgeport. More formally, the portion that become LRN 23 was added to the state system in the 1909 First Bond Issue, running from Saugus to Bridgeport. It was extended in 1911 when Chapter 468 established the Alpine State Highway as:
It was further extended in the Second Bond Act with a reference to "an extension connecting Antelope Valley in the County of Los Angeles with the city of Los Angeles by the most direct and practical route..." By 1935, it was codified into the state highway code as the following route:
It was rapidly amended by 1935 Chapter 274 to be: From Los Angeles to [LRN 11] near Meyers Station via Antelope Valley, Independence, Bridgeport, and Markleeville The portion from Los Angeles to Markleeville was considered primary state highway. In 1961, Chapter 1146 clarified the description, changing "Meyers Station" to "Meyers", making the definition Los Angeles to LRN 11 near Meyers via the vicinity of Antelope Valley, Independence, Bridgeport and Markleeville. This routing was signed as follows:
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Overall statistics for Route 24:
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Route 24 started at US 40 (now I-80) in Oakland. It ran along Ashby Avenue (present-day Route 13, LRN 206, defined in 1935) to Ashby and Broadway. Route 24 may also have been signed along Broadway between US 50 and Ashby and Broadway; the maps are unclear, but the route was LRN 75. Route 24 then ran E to Walnut Creek (along present-day Route 24); this was LRN 75. It was then likely cosigned with Route 21 until the Route 21/Route 24 junction (this segment of Route 21 was also LRN 75). This was all defined in the 1931-1933 time. From Route 4 (Route 24's present-day terminus), it continued cosigned with Route 4 between from near Concord to near Antioch (this was LRN 75, defined in 1931). Route 24 then ran N to Sacramento, following the route of present-day Route 160, entering along Freeport Blvd. This was LRN 11, defined in 1933. It is possible that the original Jiboom Street bridge over the American River and Main Drainage Canal was built for the 1950s-1963 routing of Route 24
The portion from near Cherokee and Quincy was under construction, and so a Temporary Route 24 ran from Oroville to Quincy through Berry Creek and Merrimac and Bucks (likely a temporary routing of LRN 21, 1934-1935, perhaps todays Route 162). The Feather River rout |