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CA 154 as an alternate to US 101

Started by Hiroshi66, November 23, 2016, 10:54:09 PM

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Hiroshi66

Has CA 154 through Los Olivos effectively become the preferred bypass of the Buellton-Lompoc-Solvang stretch of US 101 for motorists heading from LA to the Bay Area on US 101?

Most navigation systems/apps (Waze, Google Maps, etc.) direct drivers to get on CA 154 from US 101 in Santa Barbara, only to rejoin the US 101 north of Solvang about 30-40 miles later. This is definitely shorter and saves one about 20 miles (by my estimation - I could be wrong) but I am just curious if this really has become the preferred method of getting to the Bay Area from Southern California if someone is taking US 101. Since CA 154 is a more local road with less motorist services and bad lighting at nights, is it really a good idea for apps like Waze to direct motorists this way, even though it is shorter?

Was on a trip to Morro Bay this weekend and it directed us to take CA 154 - which is why i thought of this question and thought I'd discuss with you all.  :wave:


gonealookin

In the 70s I went to high school on the Santa Barbara side of the mountains and we played some games against schools over in the Santa Ynez Valley.  I was on the varsity van, and we would always laugh when the bus carrying the JV made the turn to take the long US 101 route home while we took the CA 154 shortcut over San Marcos Pass.

There's a warm spring on state park land near the US 101/CA 1 junction north of the Gaviota tunnel.  The only time I've used US 101 on the San Francisco-Santa Barbara run as an adult is when I wanted to visit that spring.  Otherwise I always take CA 154.

coatimundi

I never took 154 coming back up here until the last trip, last month. And I'll never do it again. There was a ton of traffic, it was mountainous and curvy, and there were mostly no passing lanes. Plus, when you reach Los Olivos, you hit the sort of "I wanna turn but I don't know where" thing that you see a lot in goofy tourist areas.
Scenery-wise, I think it's a toss up: you get some gorgeous views of the ocean around Pismo on the 101, but 154 goes through some very beautiful inland mountain country.

What's interesting and (I think) detrimental about GPS is that it, like all computer programs, has no reasoning. Do a Google Maps query for Santa Barbara to Santa Maria: it suggests 154 almost consistently, at 64.8 miles & 72 minutes. It does not suggest staying on 101, even in the gray alternate route. Now, drag the route down to force it onto the 101: 76.8 miles & 72 minutes.
It's the same amount of time and all expressway, so why didn't Google Maps suggest it? Because that's not in the algorithm.

And I've found consistently that, if you can find a route that is not picked up by the algorithm by just looking at a map and using your brain, then you can avoid almost all significant traffic. For example: over the mountains between 101 and I-5, 46 is the preferred route by GPS. On weekends, the 101 exit ramp for 46 backs up for a half mile, and the traffic will crawl through the still-two-lane Chalome area at about 25mph. However, if you use 198, which does add a bit to the time on paper because of its more mountainous nature, you will see almost no traffic at all, and it's a very pleasant drive.
And this is the case all over the country. People just have no interest in looking at maps and making intelligent decisions. We've got this idea that the computer knows best, and just to accept it without having to think about it.
And I'll just leave the soapbox there...

Max Rockatansky

#3
One thing I'll add to the GPS talk above.  Basically almost any rural highway is going to have a speed limit of 55 MPH no matter the terrain.  Your GPS is going to tell you the correct speed limit but maintaining said speed can be a heavy duty chore if not outright impossible.  Granted it's fun as all hell to try to do 55 MPH on some roads like 245, 299, 108, US 199, 33, or even 1 through Big Sur.  I'm fairly certain that all I saw even on 4 through Ebbetts Pass in the single lane section was just an advisory speed limit.  So basically my advice for anyone driving in California is to stick to the main routes if you're looking to get somewhere in the shortest amount of time.  Google Maps usually is pretty good at giving a somewhat realistic prediction on time.

coatimundi

Quote from: Max Rockatansky on November 24, 2016, 12:12:04 AM
or even 1 through Big Sur

You just gotta laugh at those people who see the Google Maps' suggested time based on that 55mph limit and think, "Yeah, I can drive Monterey to Los Angeles on Highway 1 in a day and still stop for scenery!"

Max Rockatansky

Quote from: coatimundi on November 24, 2016, 12:17:48 AM
Quote from: Max Rockatansky on November 24, 2016, 12:12:04 AM
or even 1 through Big Sur

You just gotta laugh at those people who see the Google Maps' suggested time based on that 55mph limit and think, "Yeah, I can drive Monterey to Los Angeles on Highway 1 in a day and still stop for scenery!"

Yeah I'd say give that one minimum five hours from Cambria to Monterey just if you wanted pictures alone.  I'd give it even more time for anyone who isn't familiar with 1 through Big Sur.  The best...or worst is when there is a gaggle of out of state folk who think the yellow advisory signs are the actual limit or are just plain scared because they've never driven a mountain road before.   

compdude787

Quote from: Max Rockatansky on November 24, 2016, 12:12:04 AM
One thing I'll add to the GPS talk above.  Basically almost any rural highway is going to have a speed limit of 55 MPH no matter the terrain.  Your GPS is going to tell you the correct speed limit but maintaining said speed can be a heavy duty chore if not outright impossible.  Granted it's fun as all hell to try to do 55 MPH on some roads like 245, 299, 108, US 199, 33, or even 1 through Big Sur.  I'm fairly certain that all I saw even on 4 through Ebbetts Pass in the single lane section was just an advisory speed limit.  So basically my advice for anyone driving in California is to stick to the main routes if you're looking to get somewhere in the shortest amount of time.  Google Maps usually is pretty good at giving a somewhat realistic prediction on time.

Hmm, my friend and I are planning on doing a road trip down to LA this summer. I ought to keep this in mind that the travel time on Google Maps is based on the road's speed limit, even if it is impossible to maintain that speed.

Max Rockatansky

Quote from: compdude787 on November 24, 2016, 12:54:37 AM
Quote from: Max Rockatansky on November 24, 2016, 12:12:04 AM
One thing I'll add to the GPS talk above.  Basically almost any rural highway is going to have a speed limit of 55 MPH no matter the terrain.  Your GPS is going to tell you the correct speed limit but maintaining said speed can be a heavy duty chore if not outright impossible.  Granted it's fun as all hell to try to do 55 MPH on some roads like 245, 299, 108, US 199, 33, or even 1 through Big Sur.  I'm fairly certain that all I saw even on 4 through Ebbetts Pass in the single lane section was just an advisory speed limit.  So basically my advice for anyone driving in California is to stick to the main routes if you're looking to get somewhere in the shortest amount of time.  Google Maps usually is pretty good at giving a somewhat realistic prediction on time.

Hmm, my friend and I are planning on doing a road trip down to LA this summer. I ought to keep this in mind that the travel time on Google Maps is based on the road's speed limit, even if it is impossible to maintain that speed.

It's "possible" to do in one day, but you won't get the most out of it.  I'd recommend stayed my at San Simeon since it's basically at the starting point where 1 gets difficult to do anything consistently over 35 MPH. 

Hiroshi66

I totally agree with the comments on GPS systems. I pride myself on rarely using GPS navigation, and when I do, it is to get an idea of how bad the traffic is or just for curiosity, to see what the 'computer' recommends. Some of my friends swear by GPS and when I suggest an alternate route, they are shocked that the GPS didn't suggest it. LOL!

My personal opinion on CA 154 v. US 101 is that while CA 154 is definitely more scenic and preferable, I don't think it makes a big difference (time-wise) compared to US 101 due to the speed limit. If someone has extra time and wants to get off the highway for a bit, I would recommend it, but if they are in a rush to get to SLO, Monterey, or the Bay Area, I'd just stick to the main highway US 101.

Speaking of CA 46, guess what the GPS told us to take when we were doing the Morro Bay trip the other day from our home in the San Fernando Valley? I checked it just for curiosity to see what it would recommend.

I-5 to CA 46
CA 46 to US 101
US 101 to CA 1

We just did US 101 all the way, but I noticed that the GPS will route us to CA 46 every single time you set a destination up that is along US 101 in the Central Coast or the Bay Area.

Out of the major connectors between US 101 and I-5 over the coastal range, is CA 46 really the best option? What about CA 58, CA 41, or CA 166? I haven't had a chance to drive these routes but I will one day. I suspect it's because CA 46 is the easiest/shortest route to drive, but I'm not too familiar with conditions of CA 41, CA 166, and CA 58 between US 101 and I-5.

Max Rockatansky

#9
If Big Sur is where you are looking to go then yes I-5 and CA 46 probably would be your best bet over even US 101.  The traffic on I-5 is mostly truckers since almost all the locals are over on CA 99.  CA 46 is basically mostly flat and pretty much a direct route to CA 1 just a smidge north of Harmony.  58 is probably is the most quiet out of the three routes you asked about but it is not an easy road and takes you all the place...plenty of sudden 90 degree turns out by Soda Lake.  166 is going to have you back tracking way too much to give it any advantage over 46....plus there is a lot more truck traffic than you might expect.  If you do 166 I'd suggest taking an extra day to double it up with 33 north out of Ventura, that's an awesome drive.

Edit:  I'll add some of my thoughts on 198 and 152 also since they were brought up.  152 is basically the main west cut over for Fresno traffic to the Bay Area and points beyond.  Pacheco Pass gets kind of nuts with the truckers going slow and everyone else trying to blow by them.  Things get difficult around Hollister where both 152 and 156 are just two-lanes, I've had to deal with massive hour long back ups on 152 to US 101 in the not too distant past.

198 is an awesome road west of Coalinga.  It's a very sparsely traveled roadway and despite being heavily curved through the Diablo Range can be traveled at a pretty good rate of speed.  Local truckers can be an issue but like Coatimundi said they can easily be passed.  CA 25 is an even wilder road if you're looking to cut north along something different.  CA 25 on a map looks like an easy road but it's actually all over the place and straddles the San Andreas Fault.  You definitely can hit 55-60 MPH no problem in the straights but you'll be having to hit the brakes hard to make some of those tight turns.  The roadway isn't in the best of shape either but it's almost no traffic to Hollister and can be a lot of fun doubled with 198.

coatimundi

Quote from: Hiroshi66 on November 24, 2016, 11:22:52 AM
Out of the major connectors between US 101 and I-5 over the coastal range, is CA 46 really the best option? What about CA 58, CA 41, or CA 166? I haven't had a chance to drive these routes but I will one day. I suspect it's because CA 46 is the easiest/shortest route to drive, but I'm not too familiar with conditions of CA 41, CA 166, and CA 58 between US 101 and I-5.

46 is in good condition, with mostly 4-lane divided stretches (which are all very new, so they're well done), and has fewer mountainous areas than most of the other passes. However, it still has several long 2-lane stretches, and all that GPS-driven traffic adds up and it can see serious slowdowns, aggressive driving, and all the other fun things you see when a road is over its capacity. It gets worse when 41 comes in, because then all the people from the Central Valley connect with it, and it's already 2-lane.
152 is typically the alternate routing to reach the Bay Area, and even the Monterey Peninsula. It's four lanes and 65mph from I-5 all the way to the 152/156 split. However, this also gets really busy when a lot of people are headed this way. The two-lane stretch through Hollister gets very backed up, as does the 152 side going to Gilroy, and the two-lane stretch of 156 west of the 101. It's really pretty easy to avoid though: you just don't drive it when everyone else does. Avoid westbound on Friday & Saturday afternoons. It's fine most of the time. I drive it regularly.
198 does probably add mileage and definitely adds time when there's no traffic, but I think it's really pretty and a very enjoyable drive. You will get stuck behind a truck headed to the oil fields in Coalinga sometimes though, but there are opportunities to pass. And when 152 and 46 are backed up with people trying to escape their hellish, irrigated desert, 198 is totally clear and 101 south of Gonzales is also generally clear and pleasant (it doesn't back up, but it does get a little hectic during harvest season when the farm trucks are going 35 on there).
58 is a little much: lots of tight curves and some sections where you're looking at steep drop-offs. It can be fun, but I believe it adds quite a bit of time because of all the curves.
It's been a long time since I've been on 166, but I remember it being fairly tame, with more traffic than I expected. It's a little out of the way to take it all the way to I-5, since it jogs back north so much. But, then, if you take 33 south, you have to cross the same mountains again.

For Big Sur, it depends on where, in Big Sur, you want to go, and if you want to drive the entire Highway 1. It's a bit quicker to take 101 all the way up to southern Salinas, then use the back way through Spreckels (exit Abbott, left on Harris) to reach 68, then back south on 1. That adds mileage, but the straight sections and speeds really change the time you make. Plus, you're not stuck paying $15 for a bad lunch in Cambria and way too much for gas.
You can also take a bit of mileage off by taking the Laureles Grade from 68 over to Carmel Valley Road, then that to Highway 1. It's very steep though, but you can keep it at at least 40 if you don't mind your car pulling a lot on the curves.

Hiroshi66

Thank you so much for your comments! Very informative. :)

It makes sense that 46 is busy now with all the traffic from GPS. We've always done 5 -> 152 -> 101 when going to the Bay Area, so I want to try something new next time. I might try 198 because I've always wanted to do that drive.

Yes, the 33-166 drive out of Ventura is definitely on my list. One day when I'm realllly experimental (and have a lot of time) I actually want to do 33 all the way up to Tracy/580 through the Central Valley. 33 is fascinating to me because of how it intersects I-5 at so many points and how it continues pretty much up to the Bay Area.

58 and Soda Lake is on the list for one day, too!

Max Rockatansky

Quote from: Hiroshi66 on November 26, 2016, 10:35:47 AM
Thank you so much for your comments! Very informative. :)

It makes sense that 46 is busy now with all the traffic from GPS. We've always done 5 -> 152 -> 101 when going to the Bay Area, so I want to try something new next time. I might try 198 because I've always wanted to do that drive.

Yes, the 33-166 drive out of Ventura is definitely on my list. One day when I'm realllly experimental (and have a lot of time) I actually want to do 33 all the way up to Tracy/580 through the Central Valley. 33 is fascinating to me because of how it intersects I-5 at so many points and how it continues pretty much up to the Bay Area.

58 and Soda Lake is on the list for one day, too!

The only problem with 33 north of Taft is that it's a slow burn with 55 MPH speed limits when it ought to be 60 or 65 MPH.  South of Taft it's actually the old alignment of US 399 all the way to Ventura.  I put up a bunch of recent pictures from 33 and Soda Lake in the thread called "Max's Pacific Southwest Roads" if you want to know what you're in for. 

Hiroshi66

Quote from: Max Rockatansky on November 26, 2016, 10:51:37 AM

The only problem with 33 north of Taft is that it's a slow burn with 55 MPH speed limits when it ought to be 60 or 65 MPH.  South of Taft it's actually the old alignment of US 399 all the way to Ventura.  I put up a bunch of recent pictures from 33 and Soda Lake in the thread called "Max's Pacific Southwest Roads" if you want to know what you're in for.

Yes, I did see your pictures in the thread and enjoyed them very much! Thank you. I'll probably have to do that one on my own since my passengers might not appreciate the slow, slow drive. LOL.


sparker

#14
Back in the spring of '99 I took it upon myself to travel from Anaheim Hills, where I was living at the time, to a friend's house in Redwood Estates (off CA 17 just north of the summit) -- without using a single yard of freeway; surface streets & roads only.  Caltrans' (and its predecessor agency's) practice of laying freeway directly over existing routes complicated the process somewhat.  This is a thumbnail description of the route, which utilized several of the highways discussed in this thread:
(1) Various LA metro city streets from Anaheim Hills to Chatsworth, passing through Whittier & Glendale (trying to avoid early-morning rush; took off at about 7:30 am).
(2) Santa Susana Pass road segueing onto the old 118 alignment through Simi and Santa Susana, and using local roads around Moorpark to access 118 west of that city.
(3) 118 west past 126 to Telegraph Road (old 126).  Would have used Balcom Canyon up to Santa Paula, but it was closed due to slides.
(4) Telegraph Road east to CA 150 in Santa Paula, then 150 N & W to CA 33 at Ojai.
(5) CA 33 north through Maricopa, McKittrick, and Avenal to CA 198 in Coalinga.
(6) 198 west to 25, then 25 north into Hollister.
(7) Old/Business CA 156 west to the actual CA 156; this was shortly after the Hollister bypass expressway was completed.  CA 156 west to local streets in San Juan Bautista, local streets north to the US 101/CA 129 interchange. 
(8) CA 129 west into Watsonville, then continuing west and north on local streets paralleling the CA 1 freeway to Soquel.
(9) North on San Jose-Soquel Road to Summit Road, then west on Summit to the old Highway 17 roadway east of the current route. 
(10) North on the old 17 route to the access road that eventually passes under CA 17 at the Redwood estates dual RIRO; then up the hill to my destination. 

Got in about 6:30 in the evening, so an approximate total of 11 hours on the road -- breakfast at Jerry's Deli in Encino, snacks in Maricopa, and stopped at a taqueria in Hollister for dinner.  All in all, one of the better SoCal to NorCal trips I've taken.  Pre-GPS, of course; doable thanks to a packet of Auto Club maps!   

TheStranger

I've used 154 as an alternate between Santa Maria and Santa Barbara multiple times...while I actually found the traffic on it pretty manageable, two things prevent it from being a clearly better route than 101 (and it isn't that it's primarily two-lane) -

1. On my most recent drive through there (2014), the relatively new roundabout where 246 and 154 meet up really does interrupt the flow of through traffic, even at the very late hour I took the road!  I wish that had been made as an grade separation instead.

2. The portion just north of Santa Barbara is somewhat twisty and slow.
Chris Sampang

Max Rockatansky

Quote from: Hiroshi66 on November 27, 2016, 12:30:54 PM
Quote from: Max Rockatansky on November 26, 2016, 10:51:37 AM

The only problem with 33 north of Taft is that it's a slow burn with 55 MPH speed limits when it ought to be 60 or 65 MPH.  South of Taft it's actually the old alignment of US 399 all the way to Ventura.  I put up a bunch of recent pictures from 33 and Soda Lake in the thread called "Max's Pacific Southwest Roads" if you want to know what you're in for.

Yes, I did see your pictures in the thread and enjoyed them very much! Thank you. I'll probably have to do that one on my own since my passengers might not appreciate the slow, slow drive. LOL.

The real weird part is that it's usually above the fog line for much of it's alignment really until it gets dumped off of I-5 north of Coalinga.  Sparse usage on 33 to be sure, hardly a sizeable town on that route at all to be had.

Max Rockatansky

Quote from: sparker on November 27, 2016, 01:23:42 PM
Back in the spring of '99 I took it upon myself to travel from Anaheim Hills, where I was living at the time, to a friend's house in Redwood Estates (off CA 17 just north of the summit) -- without using a single yard of freeway; surface streets & roads only.  Caltrans' (and its predecessor agency's) practice of laying freeway directly over existing routes complicated the process somewhat.  This is a thumbnail description of the route, which utilized several of the highways discussed in this thread:
(1) Various LA metro city streets from Anaheim Hills to Chatsworth, passing through Whittier & Glendale (trying to avoid early-morning rush; took off at about 7:30 am).
(2) Santa Susana Pass road segueing onto the old 118 alignment through Simi and Santa Susana, and using local roads around Moorpark to access 118 west of that city.
(3) 118 west past 126 to Telegraph Road (old 126).  Would have used Balcom Canyon up to Santa Paula, but it was closed due to slides.
(4) Telegraph Road east to CA 150 in Santa Paula, then 150 N & W to CA 33 at Ojai.
(5) CA 33 north through Maricopa, McKittrick, and Avenal to CA 198 in Coalinga.
(6) 198 west to 25, then 25 north into Hollister.
(7) Old/Business CA 156 west to the actual CA 156; this was shortly after the Hollister bypass expressway was completed.  CA 156 west to local streets in San Juan Bautista, local streets north to the US 101/CA 129 interchange. 
(8) CA 129 west into Watsonville, then continuing west and north on local streets paralleling the CA 1 freeway to Soquel.
(9) North on San Jose-Soquel Road to Summit Road, then west on Summit to the old Highway 17 roadway east of the current route. 
(10) North on the old 17 route to the access road that eventually passes under CA 17 at the Redwood estates dual RIRO; then up the hill to my destination. 

Got in about 6:30 in the evening, so an approximate total of 11 hours on the road -- breakfast at Jerry's Deli in Encino, snacks in Maricopa, and stopped at a taqueria in Hollister for dinner.  All in all, one of the better SoCal to NorCal trips I've taken.  Pre-GPS, of course; doable thanks to a packet of Auto Club maps!

That sounds like a hell of a fun time in my book.  Swing over on 58 west, Bitterwater Road north, CA 46/41 north, Cholame Valley Road north, and Parkfield-Coalinga Road/Parkfield Grade to CA 198 then you'd have the ultimate in obscure out of the way mountain driving to 17.

sparker

Quote from: Max Rockatansky on November 27, 2016, 10:05:41 PM

That sounds like a hell of a fun time in my book.  Swing over on 58 west, Bitterwater Road north, CA 46/41 north, Cholame Valley Road north, and Parkfield-Coalinga Road/Parkfield Grade to CA 198 then you'd have the ultimate in obscure out of the way mountain driving to 17.

It was a lot of fun.  I might have utilized the more obscure county roads, but the trip was actually the initial leg of a business trip to Seattle in my old Dodge Ram 50 (rebadged Mitsubishi) pickup with camper shell; I had a load of prototype speakers for a client in WA -- totaling nearly 600 pounds of cargo -- so on that particular trip, the non-freeway standard was about as far as I was going to take it for that day.  After spending the next day hitting the electronic surplus stores in and around San Jose, I did a single-day straight shot to Seattle (using US 97 through Klamath Falls and OR 58 over Willamette Pass, my normal non-winter route). 

Hiroshi66

Quote from: sparker on November 27, 2016, 01:23:42 PM
Back in the spring of '99 I took it upon myself to travel from Anaheim Hills, where I was living at the time, to a friend's house in Redwood Estates (off CA 17 just north of the summit) -- without using a single yard of freeway; surface streets & roads only.  Caltrans' (and its predecessor agency's) practice of laying freeway directly over existing routes complicated the process somewhat.  This is a thumbnail description of the route, which utilized several of the highways discussed in this thread:
(1) Various LA metro city streets from Anaheim Hills to Chatsworth, passing through Whittier & Glendale (trying to avoid early-morning rush; took off at about 7:30 am).
(2) Santa Susana Pass road segueing onto the old 118 alignment through Simi and Santa Susana, and using local roads around Moorpark to access 118 west of that city.
(3) 118 west past 126 to Telegraph Road (old 126).  Would have used Balcom Canyon up to Santa Paula, but it was closed due to slides.
(4) Telegraph Road east to CA 150 in Santa Paula, then 150 N & W to CA 33 at Ojai.
(5) CA 33 north through Maricopa, McKittrick, and Avenal to CA 198 in Coalinga.
(6) 198 west to 25, then 25 north into Hollister.
(7) Old/Business CA 156 west to the actual CA 156; this was shortly after the Hollister bypass expressway was completed.  CA 156 west to local streets in San Juan Bautista, local streets north to the US 101/CA 129 interchange. 
(8) CA 129 west into Watsonville, then continuing west and north on local streets paralleling the CA 1 freeway to Soquel.
(9) North on San Jose-Soquel Road to Summit Road, then west on Summit to the old Highway 17 roadway east of the current route. 
(10) North on the old 17 route to the access road that eventually passes under CA 17 at the Redwood estates dual RIRO; then up the hill to my destination. 

Got in about 6:30 in the evening, so an approximate total of 11 hours on the road -- breakfast at Jerry's Deli in Encino, snacks in Maricopa, and stopped at a taqueria in Hollister for dinner.  All in all, one of the better SoCal to NorCal trips I've taken.  Pre-GPS, of course; doable thanks to a packet of Auto Club maps!

That is awesome! Thank you for sharing your route with us. I will have to retrace your steps one day when I'm in the mood for exploring. I mentioned above that I wanted to try out 33 until it hits 198, so your route includes that stretch of the 33 I was interested in driving.

Hiroshi66

Quote from: TheStranger on November 27, 2016, 06:21:29 PM
I've used 154 as an alternate between Santa Maria and Santa Barbara multiple times...while I actually found the traffic on it pretty manageable, two things prevent it from being a clearly better route than 101 (and it isn't that it's primarily two-lane) -

1. On my most recent drive through there (2014), the relatively new roundabout where 246 and 154 meet up really does interrupt the flow of through traffic, even at the very late hour I took the road!  I wish that had been made as an grade separation instead.

2. The portion just north of Santa Barbara is somewhat twisty and slow.

I was just in Solvang on Sunday, and we did US 101 on the way in and CA 246 to CA 154 on the way back.

US 101 definitely "felt" longer, and we enjoyed the scenic aspect of CA 154 a lot more. When you're driving southbound through San Marcos Pass, the views of Santa Barbara and the Pacific are breathtaking. However, you are right about it being twisty and slow. Also for a Sunday afternoon, there was indeed a minor backup on 246 where it ends at 154. Nothing major, but you are definitely right that a grade separation would have been better there.

Next time I'm up there, I want to do CA 246 westbound towards Lompoc and Surf. I think that was the original alignment of CA 150 - which today ends at US 101 in Carpinteria but used to follow the present routing of CA 192, CA 154, and CA 246 through Solvang, Buelton, Lompoc, and eventually ended at Cabrillo Highway (CA 1) at Surf. I always thought that was amazing - CA 150 extended at one point from Santa Paula to the Central Coast at Surf!

coatimundi

Quote from: Hiroshi66 on November 30, 2016, 11:32:42 AM
Next time I'm up there, I want to do CA 246 westbound towards Lompoc and Surf. I think that was the original alignment of CA 150

Twas!
I don't know if you already know about it, but the David Rumsey map collection (which is quite extensive and has some great California maps) has Caltrans - and its precursor organization - maps online going back into the 1920's. It's a fantastic resource for highway alignment research: http://www.davidrumsey.com/luna/servlet/view/search?search=SUBMIT&q=caltrans&sort=Pub_List_No_InitialSort%2CPub_Date%2CPub_List_No%2CSeries_No&QuickSearchA=QuickSearchA

I've actually never gotten out to Surf. One day, I'd like to drive to SLO, take the morning Amtrak train down there, then take the evening train back up. Just an interesting spot.

Hiroshi66

Quote from: coatimundi on November 30, 2016, 12:53:30 PM

Twas!
I don't know if you already know about it, but the David Rumsey map collection (which is quite extensive and has some great California maps) has Caltrans - and its precursor organization - maps online going back into the 1920's. It's a fantastic resource for highway alignment research: http://www.davidrumsey.com/luna/servlet/view/search?search=SUBMIT&q=caltrans&sort=Pub_List_No_InitialSort%2CPub_Date%2CPub_List_No%2CSeries_No&QuickSearchA=QuickSearchA

I've actually never gotten out to Surf. One day, I'd like to drive to SLO, take the morning Amtrak train down there, then take the evening train back up. Just an interesting spot.

Yes, I love the map collection and study it often. My favorite one in there is the 1962 Road Map, since it is recent enough yet still shows how many changes have taken place just in the last few decades.

I've always wondered why CA 150 was truncated to Carpinteria and replaced with 192, 154, and 246? The 192 highway through the Santa Barbara foothills is so short, and they could have easily signed it as 150 if they wanted to. It would have been nice to have one, consistent route between Santa Paula and Surf.

I think I'll do Surf on my next road trip! :)

DTComposer

Quote from: Hiroshi66 on November 30, 2016, 01:06:56 PM
Quote from: coatimundi on November 30, 2016, 12:53:30 PM

Twas!
I don't know if you already know about it, but the David Rumsey map collection (which is quite extensive and has some great California maps) has Caltrans - and its precursor organization - maps online going back into the 1920's. It's a fantastic resource for highway alignment research: http://www.davidrumsey.com/luna/servlet/view/search?search=SUBMIT&q=caltrans&sort=Pub_List_No_InitialSort%2CPub_Date%2CPub_List_No%2CSeries_No&QuickSearchA=QuickSearchA

I've actually never gotten out to Surf. One day, I'd like to drive to SLO, take the morning Amtrak train down there, then take the evening train back up. Just an interesting spot.

Yes, I love the map collection and study it often. My favorite one in there is the 1962 Road Map, since it is recent enough yet still shows how many changes have taken place just in the last few decades.

I've always wondered why CA 150 was truncated to Carpinteria and replaced with 192, 154, and 246? The 192 highway through the Santa Barbara foothills is so short, and they could have easily signed it as 150 if they wanted to. It would have been nice to have one, consistent route between Santa Paula and Surf.

I think I'll do Surf on my next road trip! :)

I think I mentioned this in a previous post - but my opinion is this: if you look at each of the cities 150 connected:
Santa Paula - Ojai - Carpenteria - Santa Barbara - Solvang/Buellton - Lompoc
From a safest/most efficient route standpoint, no one would go more than one "stop" in this list without getting on US-101. From a navigation standpoint, former 150 would be redundant, and the replacement numbers make sense as local routes.

sparker

Quote from: coatimundi on November 30, 2016, 12:53:30 PM
I've actually never gotten out to Surf. One day, I'd like to drive to SLO, take the morning Amtrak train down there, then take the evening train back up. Just an interesting spot.

I've done a number of Amtrak trips up and down the coast starting back in '73; scenery-wise, it's one of the best segments of track Amtrak utilizes (right up there with the Empire Builder route through the Columbia River Gorge [Portland section] and around Glacier Park).  It's too bad the only Amtrak service north of SLO is the through (and extra-cost) Coast Starlight daily; going over the Cuesta around the almost continuous hairpin turns provides some incredible views of the SLO/Morro Bay area -- and it's nice to not have to focus one's attention on getting up or down the grade on US 101 in that same area and instead look at the scenery! 



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