It’s no tunnel, but work is under way on a $21 million bridge linking Corona to the Riverside (91) Freeway and Orange County.
The bridge is set to ease congestion on the western most Corona entry point to the 91 and allow commuters a chance to avoid more of the overcrowded freeway.
The project is small in the grand scheme of traffic problems between OC and the Inland Empire.
But it stands to be welcomed by the thousands of drivers who go from Corona to jobs in OC each day.
“This project is badly needed,” said Jeff Miller, Corona’s mayor pro tem. “It will help Corona and Riverside County businessmen and women get to their jobs in Orange County faster and safer.”
Frustration with the 91 runs high in Corona and the rest of the Inland Empire. That’s prompted many there to champion the idea of building a tunnel through the Santa Ana Mountains linking the two counties.
The $12 billion tunnel would be years off, if ever. It faces opposition from some in OC.
Miller is optimistic about a tunnel: “I’m not sure of the exact time line for (the tunnel) but ultimately both projects will make traffic flow smoother for everybody involved.”
The Corona bridge is being overseen by the California Department of Transportation, the city of Corona and the Riverside County Transportation Commission. Colorado-based Sema Construction Inc.’s California division in Lake Forest is the project’s contractor.
Federal, state and city money is funding the project. Some is from Measure A, Riverside County’s half-cent sales tax for transportation improvements.
Caltrans, Corona and Riverside County transportation officials have planned for the bridge for about 10 years, according to Miller. The project could take two or more years to complete, he said.
Plans call for building a bridge over the 91 with expanded on- and off-ramps, an expansion of Green River Road and the installation of synchronized signals.
Two California Highway Patrol posts are set to be built near the bridge.
An existing bridge linking Green River to the freeway is set to be razed, according to Micaiah Revero, project manager for Sema Construction’s Lake Forest office.
The current bridge is 240 feet long, 40 feet wide with three lanes (two going north and one going south). The new bridge is set to be 430 feet long and six lanes wide. It also will have two 4-foot-wide sidewalks. New traffic signals should allow autos to merge onto the freeway without obstructing traffic, according to Miller.
The old bridge, built in 1970, doesn’t meet California’s earthquake standards, according to Revero. The old bridge also is too low, he said, making it dangerous for large trucks to pass under it.
The new bridge is set to have a 19-foot clearance over the freeway, enough room for the biggest trucks to freely pass.
The old bridge is set to stay open during construction.
Alongside it, Sema plans to build about half of the new bridge,itself larger than the old bridge.
Once the half is done, the old bridge will be demolished and the new bridge piece will slip into place. That’s likely to occur in early 2008, Revero said. The final half of the new bridge would be added after that.
The project is being designed to have as little impact on traffic as possible, according to Revero. Major work won’t take place during rush hours, he said.
Green River Expansion
Green River Road itself also is set to be expanded. The street now has two north and two south lanes. It’ll be widened to six lanes, Revero said.
An expanded Green River should benefit Corona residents during rush hour, according to John Standiford, spokesman for the Riverside County Transportation Commis-sion. Traffic backs up for miles along Green River near the freeway, he said. The traffic is so heavy at times that it blocks fire trucks, ambulances and police vehicles, Standiford said.
Green River is a major route for Corona residents commuting to OC. It’s compounded by drivers from elsewhere in the Inland Empire trying to get to OC, he said. The road often is referred to as the gateway between Orange and Riverside counties, Miller said.
The project is seen as part of a bigger effort to relieve chronic 91 congestion, Caltrans spokeswoman Shelly Lombardo said.
The bridge “will enable Caltrans to make continued improvements on the 91 Freeway over a period of years,” Lombardo said.
Fifteen years of improvements are scheduled for the 91 in three five-year phases, she said.
