The Costa Mesa Freeway (SR-55) is the primary north-south route from northeast Orange County and the Inland Empire to the beach and tourist attractions in Orange County’s coastal communities. Currently, the freeway portion of the SR-55 ends in Costa Mesa at 19th Street, with the SR-55 continuing on Newport Boulevard to Newport Beach. From 19th Street south toward Pacific Coast Highway (PCH), drivers experience high levels of traffic congestion along Newport Boulevard.
Click here for the 55 Study Fact Sheet
Current plans for the SR-55 include a proposed extension of the freeway from 19th Street to the surrounding area of Industrial Way, rejoining with Newport Boulevard. Due to land use impacts on adjacent businesses and resident areas, OCTA is working closely with Costa Mesa, Newport Beach and Caltrans through the SR-55 Access Study to develop a broad range of transportation alternatives to the freeway extension.
Traffic Volumes
On average, the SR-55 freeway carries more than 100,000 vehicles per day. Newport Boulevard, south of 19th Street and north of 17th Street, carries more than 87,000 vehicles per day. Approximately 55,000 vehicles per day travel south of 17th Street to PCH.
By 2030, the number of vehicles traveling through the area of the SR-55 and Newport Boulevard is expected to increase by nearly 20 percent.