Fix Wellsona Road intersection with U.S. 101, lack of funds for interchange upda

[ACSCmapcollector]

According to the San Luis Obispo Tribune newspaper, the Wellsona Road intersection, the overpass would be great but that would cost $30 million dollars, and traffic signals were another option.  However they are going to improve signage over there at U.S. 101 and Wellsona Road just north of Paso Robles, and I know that an diamond interchange is off the drawing boards for now, because Measure J-16 failed with only .7% short of passage at 66.0% yes votes, final count of ballots in my county.   This is an update, not repeating the same subject matter, please note that in your comments.

[coatimundi]

"lack of funds for interchange upda"

"Update"? Is that what you meant?
You're citing the SLO Tribune, but how about a link or a block of text. I mean, I doubt a paper would say "the overpass would be great". I'd genuinely like to read what they actually said about it, especially how they plan to improve the intersection by improving signage.

Traffic signals are not an option, and I hope that SLO County does not actually believe that they are. That would be the only place, from its beginning in LA to its drop into San Francisco over 400 miles later, where any kind of mainlane stop would exist. That would be ridiculous.

[ACSCmapcollector]

"lack of funds for interchange upda"

"Update"? Is that what you meant?
You're citing the SLO Tribune, but how about a link or a block of text. I mean, I doubt a paper would say "the overpass would be great". I'd genuinely like to read what they actually said about it, especially how they plan to improve the intersection by improving signage.

Traffic signals are not an option, and I hope that SLO County does not actually believe that they are. That would be the only place, from its beginning in LA to its drop into San Francisco over 400 miles later, where any kind of mainlane stop would exist. That would be ridiculous.

Yes update, Coatimundi.  There is no funds for my county even to improve the Brisco Road interchange in Arroyo Grande on U.S. 101 freeway in the south county of San Luis Obispo.

[ACSCmapcollector]

Well I can do that...here you go:

http://www.sanluisobispo.com/news/local/community/columns-blogs_/over-the-hill/article116915653.html

http://www.sanluisobispo.com/news/local/article114612228.html

[coatimundi]

I appreciate your opening relevant threads, but you have to stay on topic. "Hey, I should attack another user based on a conversation in another thread" is not a way to think when composing a post on here.


The editorial also references a front page article, so I'm including that. I believe that's where you got the $30m figure for the overpass.
http://www.sanluisobispo.com/news/local/article116018043.html

"No easy solutions"?
Close the damn truck stop. If they won't go, then cut out the crossover there (there are ways around it and it's not totally necessary) and drive them out of business. Sure, maybe 10 or so people are out of work, but that's probably better than both people dying and the cost of Caltrans improving this just for that truck stop. Anyway, an overpass, if that's what was constructed, is just going to cut off access to the truck stop anyway and then be a bridge to no where.
What they need on this stretch of 101 is something like what they did in Prunedale: don't make it a full freeway but, rather, keep it as an expressway and just cut out the dangerous crossovers.

[ACSCmapcollector]

I appreciate your opening relevant threads, but you have to stay on topic. "Hey, I should attack another user based on a conversation in another thread" is not a way to think when composing a post on here.


The editorial also references a front page article, so I'm including that. I believe that's where you got the $30m figure for the overpass.
http://www.sanluisobispo.com/news/local/article116018043.html

"No easy solutions"?
Close the damn truck stop. If they won't go, then cut out the crossover there (there are ways around it and it's not totally necessary) and drive them out of business. Sure, maybe 10 or so people are out of work, but that's probably better than both people dying and the cost of Caltrans improving this just for that truck stop. Anyway, an overpass, if that's what was constructed, is just going to cut off access to the truck stop anyway and then be a bridge to no where.
What they need on this stretch of 101 is something like what they did in Prunedale: don't make it a full freeway but, rather, keep it as an expressway and just cut out the dangerous crossovers.

That is correct, Coatmundi.  The intersection on U.S. 101 at Wellsona Road was just as bad as California State Route 46 east when 20 years ago, the San Luis Obispo Tribune editor was killed along with his family, east of Paso Robles, CA

[coatimundi]

I appreciate your opening relevant threads, but you have to stay on topic. "Hey, I should attack another user based on a conversation in another thread" is not a way to think when composing a post on here.


The editorial also references a front page article, so I'm including that. I believe that's where you got the $30m figure for the overpass.
http://www.sanluisobispo.com/news/local/article116018043.html

"No easy solutions"?
Close the damn truck stop. If they won't go, then cut out the crossover there (there are ways around it and it's not totally necessary) and drive them out of business. Sure, maybe 10 or so people are out of work, but that's probably better than both people dying and the cost of Caltrans improving this just for that truck stop. Anyway, an overpass, if that's what was constructed, is just going to cut off access to the truck stop anyway and then be a bridge to no where.
What they need on this stretch of 101 is something like what they did in Prunedale: don't make it a full freeway but, rather, keep it as an expressway and just cut out the dangerous crossovers.

That is correct, Coatmundi.  The intersection on U.S. 101 at Wellsona Road was just as bad as California State Route 46 east when 20 years ago, the San Luis Obispo Tribune editor was killed along with his family, east of Paso Robles, CA

What's correct? I didn't say anything like that and you're actually more or less disagreeing with my point.

[ACSCmapcollector]

I appreciate your opening relevant threads, but you have to stay on topic. "Hey, I should attack another user based on a conversation in another thread" is not a way to think when composing a post on here.


The editorial also references a front page article, so I'm including that. I believe that's where you got the $30m figure for the overpass.
http://www.sanluisobispo.com/news/local/article116018043.html

"No easy solutions"?
Close the damn truck stop. If they won't go, then cut out the crossover there (there are ways around it and it's not totally necessary) and drive them out of business. Sure, maybe 10 or so people are out of work, but that's probably better than both people dying and the cost of Caltrans improving this just for that truck stop. Anyway, an overpass, if that's what was constructed, is just going to cut off access to the truck stop anyway and then be a bridge to no where.
What they need on this stretch of 101 is something like what they did in Prunedale: don't make it a full freeway but, rather, keep it as an expressway and just cut out the dangerous crossovers.

That is correct, Coatmundi.  The intersection on U.S. 101 at Wellsona Road was just as bad as California State Route 46 east when 20 years ago, the San Luis Obispo Tribune editor was killed along with his family, east of Paso Robles, CA

What's correct? I didn't say anything like that and you're actually more or less disagreeing with my point.

No I am not, I am just saying that the expressway intersection needs to be fixed, that all.  Nothing more, nothing less.
The proof is in The San Luis Obispo Tribune newspaper.

[coatimundi]

No I am not, I am just saying that the expressway intersection needs to be fixed, that all.  Nothing more, nothing less.
The proof is in The San Luis Obispo Tribune newspaper.

And I'm saying that it's not an issue of the intersection needing to be fixed, it's that the truck stop that causes the traffic needs to disappear. I mentioned closing the crossover only as a way to force that to happen.
I got only a small inclination of lean on the part of the paper toward upgrades in the articles I just read about this intersection. One of them was an op-ed, so of course that has a clear opinion on it, but I thought the initial article did a good job at presenting both sides: Caltrans, who is trying to improve the intersection without significant infrastructure improvements; and those residents who have knee-jerk reactions to what seem to be issues of complacency in the driving habits of the local population regarding the intersection.
My point here being that, no, the proof is not in the articles. The articles are presenting facts, as journalism should, instead of an opinion and telling you what to think about an issue.

[ACSCmapcollector]

No I am not, I am just saying that the expressway intersection needs to be fixed, that all.  Nothing more, nothing less.
The proof is in The San Luis Obispo Tribune newspaper.

And I'm saying that it's not an issue of the intersection needing to be fixed, it's that the truck stop that causes the traffic needs to disappear. I mentioned closing the crossover only as a way to force that to happen.
I got only a small inclination of lean on the part of the paper toward upgrades in the articles I just read about this intersection. One of them was an op-ed, so of course that has a clear opinion on it, but I thought the initial article did a good job at presenting both sides: Caltrans, who is trying to improve the intersection without significant infrastructure improvements; and those residents who have knee-jerk reactions to what seem to be issues of complacency in the driving habits of the local population regarding the intersection.
My point here being that, no, the proof is not in the articles. The articles are presenting facts, as journalism should, instead of an opinion and telling you what to think about an issue.

Ok good, then the subject is over with.  The only comment I got from my buddy friend is to dig an underpass like that, which is dumb!  I told him how are you going to solve the Wellsona Road traffic too.  He thinks digging under 4 lane expressways would help like California state route 1 for a freeway near Cuesta College, and my answer to him is DUH!  Now he would get it by now.

[myosh_tino]

Looking at Google Maps, there's clearly not enough real estate to build any kind of interchange without taking out the truck stop and Benton Rd.  Then there's the Vine RV Resort and other businesses located to the east of the intersection that probably depend on Wellsona Road's access to 101.  Closing the intersection is an option but may not be ideal since there are no convenient places to turn around as the nearest interchanges are 3 miles south and 3 3/4 miles north of this intersection.

To be perfectly honest, I don't see any real good alternatives short of closing the intersection, businesses (besides the truck stop) be damned.

[coatimundi]

Closing the intersection is an option but may not be ideal since there are no convenient places to turn around as the nearest interchanges are 3 miles south and 3 3/4 miles north of this intersection.

That's a good point.
And I think, again, this illustrates the need for the Prunedale Solution. For instance, just as Prunedale South Road was constructed over 101 and the crossovers shut off, Exline Road (the little connector between Stockdale and Monterey Roads) could be turned into an overpass and all other crossovers shut down. It would actually help more, I think, if there was grade separation and both ends of Monterey Road, allowing the traffic to connect to the 101 in the same direction. Really, through intersection improvements: at the northern end, prohibit left turns from NB Monterey Road to SB 101 and turn it into a free right turn with short run lane, then get rid of the left turn lane on NB 101. Bam: one more winery out of business...

[jeffe]

Looking at Google Maps, there's clearly not enough real estate to build any kind of interchange without taking out the truck stop and Benton Rd. 

Yeah, the land around the intersection looks too constrained to fit in a set of diagonal ramps:


However, there is room in the SE quadrant for a loop and diagonal ramp:

Source: http://www.slocounty.ca.gov/Assets/PL/Ordinances/Title+22+-++Land+Use+Ordinance/05+-+Article+9+-+North+County+Planning+Area.pdf

There may be room in the SW quadrant for a similar configuration that would line up with the Benton Road intersection.