San Diego Freeway (I-405) Improvement Project

Today, the San Diego Freeway (I-405) is one of the most congested freeways in Orange County, carrying more than 300,000 vehicle trips in some sections each day. Traffic volumes on the I-405 are expected to increase significantly and the population is expected to grow 11 percent by 2040.

Caltrans (California Department of Transportation), in cooperation with the Orange County Transportation Authority (OCTA), is proposing to widen the San Diego Freeway (I-405) between State Route 73 (SR-73) and Interstate 605 (I-605). The purpose of the proposed improvement is to improve travel conditions for work, recreation, school, and commerce by increasing freeway capacity, improving traffic and interchange operations, and enhancing road safety to meet state and federal standards.

The M2 revenues for the I-405 Improvement Project are currently estimated to be $600 million over the life of the M2 program.

I-405 Environmental Phase

As required by the California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA) and the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA), Caltrans, in cooperation with OCTA, is preparing an Environmental Impact Report/ Environmental Impact Statement (EIR/EIS) for this Project. The EIR/EIS will be undertaken to analyze factors that include, but are not limited to, the following:  aesthetics, cultural resources, biological resources, hazardous wastes and materials, public services and facilities, water quality, floodplain, noise, air quality, recreation, community impacts, and transportation/traffic.

There are currently three Build Alternatives, a Transportation Systems Management (TSM)/ Transportation Demand Management (TDM)/Mass Transit Alternative, and the No Build Alternative. 

Alternatives:

Baseline Alternative (No Build)

• No additional lanes or interchange improvements

Build Alternative 1: Add One General Purpose Lane in Each Direction

• Adds a single general purpose lane in each direction of the I-405 freeway from Euclid Street to the I-605 interchange
• Interchange improvements within the project limits

Build Alternative 2: Add Two General Purpose Lanes in Each Direction

• Adds two general purpose lanes in each direction of the I-405 freeway from Euclid Street to the I-605 interchange 
• Interchange improvements within the project limits

Build Alternative 3: Express Facility Alternative

• Adds one toll lane to the existing carpool lane that will be managed together (Federal Highway Administration tolling authority required)
• Adds a single general purpose lane in each direction of the I-405 freeway from Euclid Street to the I-605 interchange
• Interchange improvements within the project limits

TSM/TDM/Mass Transit Alternative

• Involves low-cost operational improvements and not major capital projects

The first two build alternatives were developed as a part of the I-405 Major Investment Study and were approved by the OCTA Board of Directors in 2005. Following the MIS, OCTA and Caltrans completed a Project Study Report in 2008 which recommended two alternatives to be carried forward into the environmental phase (Alternatives 1 and 2).

A revised project cost estimate of $1.3 billion to $1.7 billion was also included in the PSR (non-escalated). The third build alternative was added in January 2009 by the Board in light of the current economic climate and a decrease in available funds. Currently, all the build alternatives are generally within the existing right-of-way. During the EIR/ EIS, environmental and preliminary engineering analyses will be completed to identify the alternative that will meet the existing and future transportation needs for the corridor.

The I-405 Improvement Project environmental phase must be completed before the project moves forward into to design, right-of-way aquisition and construction. Construction is approximately three to six years away, depending on funding availability and project delivery method.

Public Outreach 

The environmental phase includes extensive public outreach. Four Public Scoping Meetings were held in Fall 2009 to provide an early exchange of information and to give interested parties an opportunity to provide comments or identify concerns. Comments received at the meeting became part of the public record and will be considered in defining the scope of the project and developing the EIR/EIS.

View the scoping meeting materials.  

Another series of public meetings will be held in late 2011 during the draft EIR / EIS public review period.  Additional information regarding the meetings will be posted online as soon as the dates and locations are available.

Information 

Christina Byrne

Community Relations Officer

(714) 560-5717  |  cbyrne@octa.net