Ah, the end of the teens. The 21st century is moving into the 20s. What a decade it has been.
As befits the winter months, things have been a bit quieter. But still there are headlines. I’ve also been working on the highway pages (although not all uploaded yet) to add pictures to all the naming resolutions, with the goal of putting faces with the names. If we’re going to go to the trouble of naming a highway after someone, we should know who that person is or was, and be able to look at their face and seem them as more than just a name we pass by at 60mph. These were people that contributed to society and were important to their family. Remembering is important.
In any case, here are the headlines about California Highways for December. Ready, set, discuss.
[💰 Paywalls and 🚫 other annoying restrictions: $LAT/LA Times; SJMN/Mercury News; OCR/Orange County Register; VSG/Visalia Sun Gazette; RDI/Ridgecrest Daily Independent; PE/Press Enterprise; TDT/Tahoe Daily Tribune]
- 💰 LAT / Toll lanes in the Sepulveda Pass? The 405 Freeway is moving in that direction. Los Angeles County spent 4½ years and more than $1.6 billion to widen the 405 Freeway through the Sepulveda Pass. Now, the carpool lane born from that mega-project is facing a major change of its own: tolls. The Metropolitan Transportation Authority is in the early stages of planning to allow solo drivers in the 405’s carpool lanes, for a price. Similar programs on portions of the 110 and 10 freeways charge drivers a per-mile toll that changes based on traffic conditions.
- A Line, making transit a habit, 405 ExpressLanes: Metro News Now, Dec. 2. I’m sure some of you reading this enjoyed some quality time sitting parked on the 405 freeway at some point in the last week. Thus you may be interested to know that the Metro Board on Thursday will consider a $27.5-million contract with WP USA to do the environmental document and other studies for the Sepulveda Pass ExpressLanes project, reports the LAT.
- Metro eyes toll road on 105 in Downey. One of the best things about living in Downey is our freeway proximity. And that includes hopping on the 105 Freeway and a straight shot to LAX. That drive could get more complicated, however. The LA Times published a story today about Metro’s plans to add a toll lane to the 405 Freeway through the Sepulveda Pass. At the end of the article is this revelation …
- Metro Driving Toward Sepulveda Pass Toll Lanes On 405 Freeway. Toll lanes are being explored for one of the busiest freeways in the nation – the 405 Freeway in West Los Angeles. Metro is in the early stages of a plan to create 405 Freeway “fast lanes” that would give drivers willing to pay up a lane of their own.
- Upgrade in Eureka. Times they are a-changin’! We’re aiming for another helpful upgrade in Eureka by the end of the year. Those that regularly use the Henderson Street intersection along U.S. Highway 101 know that traffic can back up there. …
- Caltrans: Part of Henderson Street in Eureka to be made a one-way to reduce congestion. By the end of 2019, the California Dept. of Transportation plans to turn part of Henderson Street into a one-way route to alleviate traffic delays in the area. Caltrans said the area of Henderson Street between Highway 101 and Fairfield will be turned into three lanes, all going toward the highway.
