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The City of San Diego is currently sponsoring the Project Report (PR) and Environmental Document (ED) phase of the Interstate 5 (I-5)/ State Route-56 (SR-56) Interchange Project. Caltrans District 11 is acting in an oversight role, and the San Diego Association of Governments (SANDAG) is taking an advisory role. The purpose of this project is to study the access between SR-56 and I-5 (the north section of the interchange) in the City of San Diego.
A Project Study Report (PSR) was completed by Caltrans in December 2000. That document discussed a Freeway Connectors alternative, a Local Streets alternative, and the No Build alternative.
A Value Analysis Report was also completed in May 2002. This study involved community representatives and agency staff from the City of San Diego, Caltrans, and SANDAG, and looked at a number of different alternatives to solve the project need.
The current PR/ED phase will serve, in part, as a continuation of the previous studies while exploring new solutions with the project team. An updated comprehensive traffic analysis using the latest SANDAG forecasts for design year 2030 will be utilized to evaluate the engineering solutions, both previous and new.
Project funding for the Project Report and Environmental Document will be taken from a combination of Federal sources and City of San Diego Matching funds. Federal Funding sources include Coordinated Borders Infrastructure (CBI), Federal High Priority Demonstration (DEMO), and Section 330 Surface Transportation funds. Approximately $9.1 million has been programmed for the I-5/SR-56 Interchange Project, with funding for the interim improvements coming from the same source. The Interchange Project is included in the Regional Transportation Improvement Program (RTIP). Design and construction for the project would be dependent on completion of the PR/ED phase.
Related Projects
Interim Improvements
The Interim Improvements were developed by the City of San Diego, in conjunction with the I-5 / SR-56 Steering Committee, to accommodate the increases in traffic due to the opening of the middle segment of SR-56, and specifically address the increased traffic volumes to and from SR-56 at the El Camino Real interchange. The proposed improvements included widening the SR-56 westbound off-ramp for additional left and through-lanes. The Interim Improvements were constructed in advance of and independent of any additional improvements that may be analyzed or identified as part of the I-5/SR-56 Interchange Project PR/ED.
I-5/I-805 Widening Project
The I-5/I-805 project constructed a "dual freeway" from Genesee Avenue on I-5 and Mira Mesa Boulevard on I-805 to Del Mar Heights Road on I-5. A set of bypass lanes were constructed outside the existing freeway lanes allowing access to local streets and State Route 56. A new interchange at Carmel Mountain Road was also built. The concept of the dual freeway has reduced congestion in the area of the project by separating the slower traffic merging on or off the freeway from the high-speed traffic traveling through the area. The new lanes were opened to traffic in Spring 2007.
I-5 North Coast Corridor Managed Lanes Project
To help address freeway congestion in the future, the California Department of Transportation (Caltrans) is proposing to add two carpool lanes, auxiliary lanes and possibly a general purpose lane in each direction on I-5 from just south of the 5-805 merge to Vandegrift Boulevard in Oceanside. Caltrans is currently working on the environmental study and project report for the project. Caltrans anticipates having a draft Project Report and Environmental Document in the Spring of 2009.
For more information, please see the Caltrans project website at:
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