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A puzzle in San Diego

Started by pderocco, March 04, 2022, 12:36:55 AM

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pderocco

https://www.google.com/maps/@32.6934782,-117.0159468,3a,75y,172.56h,88.54t/data=!3m6!1e1!3m4!1sCa9mKu1x6pKp-tWkamRneg!2e0!7i16384!8i8192

This is a view from the ramp from CA-125 SB and CA-54 WB to the toll part of CA-125 SB. As you can see, it looks like space was reserved for another ramp, and an overpass was built for it. I've looked through the historical imagery in Google Earth, and don't see any evidence that they changed their mind about anything when constructing this interchange. Can anyone surmise what this might have been intended for? Seems like a lot of wasted expense.


froggie

I can think of two possibilities.  First is that there WAS a change of mind regarding the southbound 125 ramp...evidence of this is in both the location of grading on both sides of the 54 bridges and the fact that the westbound 54 bridge was the first one built at the interchange (this shows up on 2005 aerial imagery).

The other possibility is that it was done for drainage purposes.  When the 54/125 interchange was built, it was built almost on top of an intermittent stream.

DTComposer

https://books.google.com/books/about/Freeway_Construction_SR_125_54_West_of_W.html?id=p8U1AQAAMAAJ

Don't know if this will be helpful or not. Unfortunately, the plan sheets in the back of the book were not scanned well, but it seems none of the alternative maps include this as a future ramp (like they do for the future CA-125 north to CA-54 east connector).

ClassicHasClass

My guess, completely unsubstantiated, is for an exit to Sweetwater Rd. When Dad had his clinic in Spring Valley, before the South Bay Fwy was constructed that far east it was a significant local arterial. I put it in the same category as the Troy St interchange from CA 125, which has grading for it also, but local opposition prevented it from ever being built.

pderocco

That's a good point. They could reroute the ramp under the overpass in question, and then use the space alongside Sweetwater for part of an interchange. But I can't imagine where all the other ramps would go. But since Paradise Valley is so close by, I doubt it would be worth it.

Somewhere, there must be someone who worked on that project, and knows the answer.

Occidental Tourist

#5
Quote from: DTComposer on March 04, 2022, 10:35:53 AM
https://books.google.com/books/about/Freeway_Construction_SR_125_54_West_of_W.html?id=p8U1AQAAMAAJ

Don't know if this will be helpful or not. Unfortunately, the plan sheets in the back of the book were not scanned well, but it seems none of the alternative maps include this as a future ramp (like they do for the future CA-125 north to CA-54 east connector).

What's interesting is that the alternative designs for the interchange would have had the westbound to southbound ramp aligned closer the northbound to eastbound ramp and would have seemingly followed the path of the unused graded section under the bridge.  But the study was done 10 years before they started work on the interchange and the bridges for the 94 that the ramps pass under were built at the same time as the interchange, so there's no reasonable explanation why they wouldn't have figured out the exact routing for that movement at the time.



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