Category Archives: Old Alignment

California, Caltrans, District 7, Highways, I-5, Los Angeles County, Old Alignment, Roads, Santa Clarita, Southern California, US 99

Old US 99 at Weldon Summit

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US 99, known as “The Old Road” in the Santa Clarita area, has had a varied past. It was first built through this area in 1930 as a three-lane highway. This roadway, known then as the Newhall Alternate, would be the first of many versions of the road through this pass.

This is the last remaining uncovered stretch of the 1930 Newhall Alternate concrete. Motorcycle is on the 1951 alignment.
This is the last remaining uncovered stretch of the 1930 Newhall Alternate concrete. Motorcycle is on the 1951 alignment.

In 1949, the roadway was temporarily widened to four lanes by restriping and adding some paving to the shoulder. This was done as the real work to upgrade the highway wouldn’t commence for a couple of years. Evidence of this widening can still be seen today.

Double white striping from a "temporary" four-lane configuration of the old three-lane concrete. This was done in 1949 as an interim measure before the road was reconstructed as an expressway in 1951.
Double white striping from a “temporary” four-lane configuration of the old three-lane concrete. This was done in 1949 as an interim measure before the road was reconstructed as an expressway in 1951.

In 1951, US 99 was realigned and finally upgraded to an expressway, though this would not last long. Just south of this point, the highway was realigned again to accomodate a new freeway from the Tunnel Station Junction (US 6 and Foothill Blvd) to Sepulveda Junction (State Route 7). This freeway still exists today in part and serves as the “Truck Route” through the pass.

North view of the old southbound lanes just south of the summit.
North view of the old southbound lanes just south of the summit.

Starting in 1967 and ending in 1975, the pass was yet again the site of major construction. This time, little of the old highway would be utilized as the new route of Interstate 5 bypassed much of the existing route. Where it didn’t bypass the alignment, it was torn up and completely replaced with the current roadway.

US 99 would, however, serve as the main route one last time following the January 17, 1994 Reseda / Northridge earthquake. Portions of I-5 collapsed during the earthquake, resulting in a need for a quick replacement. The resulting detours created an alignment very similar to the pre-1967 highway, giving motorists (albeit not with joy) a chance to drive old US 99 again. Upgrades were made to the highway through the pass including repaving, guardrail, and a temporary prohibition on left turns. Sadly, for highway historians, this resulted in the loss of the 1951 concrete and some curbing. It is a price to pay to help keep California’s Backbone functioning during a crisis.

Looking northerly toward Gavin Canyon. This was the location where I-5 was temporarily rerouted onto old US 99 in 1994.
Looking northerly toward Gavin Canyon. This was the location where I-5 was temporarily rerouted onto old US 99 in 1994.
California, Caltrans, District 6, Event, Grapevine Canyon, Highways, History, Kern County, Los Angeles County, Old Alignment, Ridge Route, Roads, US 99

Ridge Route Centennial Celebration Coming Soon!

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99_old_shield_big

This year, the Ridge Route will be celebrating its 100 year anniversary. While the roadway is still not fully open to travel and has not been since January 2005, it is still there and still coming up to its century mark. This celebration will be held in Lebec at the El Tejon School, located near the top of Grapevine Grade on Lebec Road. For more information, please contact the Ridge Route Communities Museum. The road also needs your help and pressure to reopen the roadway to the public. For more information about this issue, contact the Ridge Route website.

From the Ridge Route Communities website:

Centennial

CENTENNIAL CELEBRATION – 10/3

It has been 100 years since the Ridge Route Road opened

Come celebrate with the Ridge Route Preservation Organization and the Ridge Route Communities Museum & Historical Society

from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m.

at El Tejon School right on the old two lane highway

across I-5 from Fort Tejon

There will be displays, antique automobiles, food, music,

souvenirs and a panel of speakers at 1 p.m.

Also that day there will be a

Living History Program at Fort Tejon

California, Caltrans, District 6, Highways, Image, Kern County, Old Alignment, Roads, US 466

Image of the Week – 9/13/15

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Former US 466 near Caliente in the Tehachapi Mountains. This is one of the longest remaining sections of original wooden railing in California.
Former US 466 near Caliente in the Tehachapi Mountains. This is one of the longest remaining sections of original wooden railing in California.

Burbank, California, District 7, Highways, History, Image, Los Angeles County, Old Alignment, Old Bridge, Railroads, Roads, US 99

Image of the Week – 8/15/15

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Former North Burbank UP, now removed, along old US 99 in the San Fernando Valley. Built 1941.
Former North Burbank UP, now removed, along old US 99 in the San Fernando Valley. Built 1941.

Guide, Highways, History, Old Alignment, Old Bridge, Roads

Finding Old Highways – A Guide – Part 2

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Concrete Paving

Concrete is a very durable material. It has many uses, though for our purposes – roadway surfaces, curbs, and sidewalks. Local roadways, such as concrete city streets, won’t be covered in this post. Bridges will be covered in a later post. This durability allows us to get either a relative date of when a roadway was paved or built to an absolute date when we find a date stamp.

  • Style of Paving
Short section of Roberts Rd that is now a driveway.
Short section of Roberts Rd that is now a driveway.
1920's paving near Osborne St. Note the widening work that was done on the right side. Looking west.
1920’s paving near Osborne St. Note the widening work that was done on the right side. Looking west.

As technology has evolved, so has concrete paving. The first concrete paving along State Highways was 10-12′ wide, usually not reinforced with steel. These roads were paved in one single slab of concrete. Roadways of this style were paved from around 1910 to 1915. After 1915, wider paving was used and was generally reinforced. Wider paving ran from 15′, 18′, and a “full” 20′. These are usually referred to as “Single Slab Paving”.

Sometime around 1923, longitudinal joints were added to the concrete paving. This created a “Twin Slab” roadway. This style persists today, though greatly changed. Early Twin Slab roadways had fewer expansion joints running across the lane. After around 1926, this problem was worked out by adding more frequent joints. By this time, each lane was a “standard” 10′. This standard remained until the late 1940’s when lane width started to widen to 12′.

  • Date Stamps
1948 date stamp on Olympic Blvd.
1948 date stamp on Olympic Blvd.

Contractors, either by requirement or pride, usually stamp the concrete roadway, curb, or sidewalk with a date stamp. These stamps vary in location, size, and information. California, at least on state contracts, required all concrete to be stamped starting in July 1924 (California Highways July 1924 Pg 7). Date stamps marked either the beginning or end of a days paving. As such, the stamp tended to be located near an expansion joint. A general rule with date stamps is “find one, you can find the rest”. This is mostly about the location. Some stamps are in the middle of a lane, some are to the side of a lane. The orientation also varies with stamps. The information contained in these stamps also varies. Early stamps just have the contractor and the date. Later stamps added the engineering station. Without going into too much detail, at this time, about engineering stations, the “zero” point is at the beginning of a road section or project. With little exception, I have had little success in finding a date stamp on Single Slab roadways. Twin Slab roadways are much better with stamps.

Using date stamps and styles as a guide, you can easily date a roadways construction to within a few years. There are other methods you can use, but these aren’t covered here. Some will be covered in later posts. Stay tuned for more posts. Bridges, Road Signs, and more will be covered in the future. If you have any questions, please post a comment or send me a message.