Lanes to Be Added to I-5

In a push to ease crawling traffic along crowded population corridors, Caltrans on Friday announced a $41.6-million project to build the first Golden State Freeway carpool lanes in the San Fernando Valley.

The lanes would span six miles from the Ronald Reagan Freeway to the Antelope Valley Freeway in Sylmar and could be completed by the summer of 2007, said Caltrans spokeswoman Jeanne Bonfilio.

The agency plans to follow that with carpool lanes on the Golden State Freeway from the 118 Freeway to the Hollywood Freeway and from the Hollywood Freeway to California 134, Bonfilio said.

In addition, a lane would be built to connect the Antelope Valley Freeway to the Golden State Freeway carpool lanes so motorists won’t have to leave those lanes to change freeways.

“We’re trying to provide that seamless carpool lane system,” Bonfilio said. “The new lane will save a minute a mile. That doesn’t seem like a lot, but if you drive 10 miles, you’ll save 10 minutes. That’s a lot of time.”

In the last five years, population growth in Santa Clarita and the Antelope Valley has increased traffic on the Golden State Freeway.

Several large housing developments sprouting across north Los Angeles are expected to bring up to 400,000 new residents to the region, according to the Southern California Assn. of Governments.

In 1999, an average of about 243,000 motorists drove the Golden State Freeway every day between the Ronald Reagan and Antelope Valley freeways, where the first phase of carpools would be built, said Steve Malkson, a lead transportation engineer for Caltrans. By last year, that number had increased to 273,000.

“As people build farther and farther out in L.A. County -- and Santa Clarita is building out and so is the Antelope Valley -- the volume becomes higher,” he said.

City Councilman Alex Padilla, whose district covers much of the northeast San Fernando Valley, said the carpool lanes would be a boon for commuters who deal with molasses-like traffic flows daily.

“It’s been a long time in coming. It’s certainly welcome,” Padilla said. “I’ve seen carpool [lanes] on the 170 and the 10 freeways in Los Angeles, and I’ve asked myself, ‘Where’s our fair share?’ We need a fair share of relief. Now it’s coming.”

Padilla said he was glad to hear that most of the construction would take place at night and at non-peak hours.

“This is going to help by encouraging carpools,” Padilla said. “If everyone carpooled we could take almost half the cars off the freeway because most people drive alone in L.A. County.”

Los Angeles and Ventura counties lead California in carpool lanes, with 500 miles of lanes, Bonfilio said. California has 40% of the nation’s carpool lanes, more than any other state. “The plan is to put carpool lanes on all of the freeways,” Bonfilio said. “But it all has to do with funding.”