Southern California Regional Rocks and Roads

Featured Image – 5/31/2022

October 7, 2026May 31, 2022

The Greenspot Road bridge, locally known as the “Erector Set Bridge” has an interesting history. It was originally built in 1912 located near Victorville at the Mojave Narrows. In 1932, the bridge was dismantled and replaced with a wider span for US Highway 66. In 1933, San Bernardino County purchased a portion of the span and rebuilt it over the Santa Ana River between Mentone and Highland. The bridge remained in general use until 2015 when it was bypassed by a new bridge to the west. Today, the bridge is a part of a bicycle trail along the Santa Ana River.

To get to the bridge, use either the 5th St / Greenspot Road exit on State 210 (Exit 83) from the west or via State 38 (Mill Creek Road) and Garnet St from the east.

Ridge Route Presentation

April 29, 2022

Join the Historic Highway 99 Association of California on Tuesday, May 10, 2022 at 6 pm for a presentation on the Historic Ridge Route by Michael F Ballard. The road will be covered from Castaic to Gorman. Learn about the current status of the roadway and the Ridge Route Preservation Organization that is working to …

From the Archives – 1923

October 10, 2026March 19, 2022

The Ridge Route on US 99 between Castaic and Gorman was a very twisty roadway when it first opened. All told, there was about 39,600 degrees of curvature over the approximately 30-mile route, enough to go in 110 circles. The state gradually worked to alleviate this headache by straightening curves whenever possible. Some curves were merely daylighted where others were completely bypassed. In the case of the Callahan Line Change, as shown in the postcard above, the road was shifted to change eight sharp curves into one gentle curve. The work here was completed in 1926. In 1933, the roadway would by bypassed altogether by the Ridge Route Alternate.

Ridge Route – Callahan Line Change

From the Archives – 1935

October 10, 2026February 8, 2022

In 1936, US 60 was realigned between Moreno Valley and Beaumont. This realignment took the highway off of the Jackrabbit Trail and put it on a new alignment through the Badlands. This is the same alignment State 60 follows today.

This photo from 1935 shows the immense cuts and fills that were necessary for even the two-lane version of the roadway. In 1956, the roadway was widened to a four-lane expressway, further deepening some of these cuts. Work is currently underway to make this section six-lanes, with the outer lanes being truck-climbing lanes.

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Streetcar Tracks Exposed – Part 2

January 25, 2022January 23, 2022

Ongoing roadwork in the North Park neighborhood in San Diego has exposed yet more streetcar tracks. This work is a part of a bikeway project which will add raised median islands and pedestrian signals to enhance safety along the route. The tracks for the #2 San Diego Electric Railway line are temporarily exposed on 30th …

Featured Image – 5/31/2022

Further Reading

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Ridge Route Presentation

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From the Archives – 1923

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From the Archives – 1935

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Streetcar Tracks Exposed – Part 2

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Further Reading

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