State OKs $247M for I-5 construction

Project to increase freeway traffic capacity through the SCV

The California Transportation Commission approved a $247 million allocation for construction on Interstate 5 through the Santa Clarita Valley on Wednesday.

The funding will go toward an L.A. Metro project that will increase the freeway’s traffic capacity through the SCV by creating HOV lanes, truck lanes, auxiliary lanes, and sound walls, and seven bridges will be widened and access to a weigh station will be enhanced, according to officials.

Victor Lindenheim, executive director for the Golden State Gateway Coalition, said on Wednesday that the upcoming project, which was only going to happen if the allocation was approved, will decrease congestion and improve safety, while creating jobs and expediting freight movement.

“It’s going to do a lot for our community, and the region,” said Lindenheim.

The allocation, which will

“It’s going to do a lot for our community, and the region.”

Victor Lindenheim,

Golden State Gateway Coalition executive director

fund a project headed up by L.A. Metro, comes on the heels of a Caltrans project that repaved the same stretch of freeway from 2018 to 2019.

The project was paid for directly by the funds generated by the state through Senate Bill 1, more commonly known as the Gas Tax, Lindenheim said. Additional funding for the $679 million I-5 improvement project will come from Measure M and Measure R county sales tax revenue and a federal grant, Lindenheim said.

The contract for the project will go to bid this summer, and construction is scheduled to begin as soon as 2021. The anticipated end date of the project is 2024-25.