Mulholland Drive

[cahwyguy]

Interesting tidbit history on former Route 268, created in 1964, deleted in 1970. I happened to pick up an old CHPW while watching TV. Saw the following (this is from the nov/dec 66 issue): Construct Mulholland Drive (Route 268) as a four-lane scenic highway between Topanga Canyon Blvd (route 27) and Sepulveda Blvd (Route 1), a distance of 8.9 miles. Eastimated cost, $8.300,000 of which the state will pay $5,810,000 ($2,000,000 in the 1966-67 fiscal year) and the city the balance.

Not withstanding the fact that Sepulveda wasn't route 1 (in 1966, it wasn't even a state highway, as the 405 was open, but it might have been unrelinquished 405, or LRN 158), and Route 1 was actually PCH -- in the other direction, towards and beyond Malibu, I wonder how far they got on the actual design of this? Depending on the direction, just imagine the interchange with either Route 14 near Reseda, or Route 64 near Malibu Canyon.

[skluth]

Is Mulholland Drive being constructed (or maybe reconstructed) between Santa Maria Road and Mandeville Fire Road? Google Maps has a dashed line like it's under construction. The right of way is clearly there on the imagery. Rand McNally shows it as complete even in the 2015 edition. I'm planning to move to SoCal from St Louis later this year and it looks like a beautiful drive worth checking out. I can't imagine it being a dirt road.

Thanks.

[Rothman]

That is the gated section that is closed to vehicles.  Been that way for years.  Part of Santa Monica NRA.

[Max Rockatansky]

That is the gated section that is closed to vehicles.  Been that way for years.  Part of Santa Monica NRA.

I believe it is accessible as a mountain bike trail. 

[Plutonic Panda]

That is the gated section that is closed to vehicles.  Been that way for years.  Part of Santa Monica NRA.

I believe it is accessible as a mountain bike trail.

It is. I ride it a lot.

PS, Mulholland Dr. is my favorite road of all time. I love this road so much. It has amazing energy.

PPS, I love the money lamp.

[pderocco]

When I started visiting California in the early 1980s, it was still open to cars, as a graded dirt road. It had several pull-offs with views across the San Fernando Valley, and they were all littered with broken beer bottles. That's probably why they closed it. Mountain bikers and hikers are less likely to be carrying beer.

[Plutonic Panda]

BTW, on the portion they turned into a trail about 1/4 of the way to Topanga there is an old misslie launching site you can go check out. It's pretty cool.

[skluth]

Thanks for all the info. I am surprised Rand McNally doesn't show it as a private road.

[Plutonic Panda]

Thanks for all the info. I am surprised Rand McNally doesn't show it as a private road.

I don't think it is a private road? It's just not open to vehicles but is open to the public.

[Rothman]

Right.  Public trail owned by NPS.

[Max Rockatansky]

Right.  Public trail owned by NPS.

Hence the dashed lines mentioned earlier on Google which would denote an established trail.  Google might even have a street view of it already, they do for many trails in the Sierras. 

[Bickendan]

Thomas Guide shows it as an unpaved/restricted road from Trinidad Rd to Encino Hills Dr.

[Max Rockatansky]

I recently drove Mulholland Drive between Cahuenga Pass west to Sepulveda Pass.  I linked over a couple maps off David Rumsey showing the planned route of CA 268 between I-405 west to CA 27:

https://www.gribblenation.org/2019/06/mulholland-drive-cahuenga-pass-west-to.html