City of San Juan Capistrano/ Ortega Highway & I-5 Interchange Improvement Plan..

Good lord almighty, this has been a grossly overdue issue gone un-addressed since the mid-1970’s.

The City of San Juan Capistrano just a released a Caltrans declaration stating that their “enviormental study”, relavent to proposed improvements for Capistrano commuters seeking Interstate 5 access, has deemed that improvements will “have no significant impact on the human environment”. 

City officials received the Final Environmental Impact Report, which says there is sufficient evidence and analysis for determining that a more thorough environmental study is not required.

Great news! Let’s break ground boy’s!!! Hell, let me grab my shovel, I’ll pitch in…

The Ortega Interchange Improvement Project is a key project in the City’s Traffic Congestion Relief Program. Last year, the environmental studies were completed and the draft environmental impact report was released to the public for comment. After considering the options, the City Council in January, selected “Alternative 3″ primarily as a stimulus to create energy in San Juan Capistrano’s downtown and relieve congestion near the interchange.

For a visual overview of all proposed plans pertaining to the Ortega/ I-5/ Del Obispo improvemnets, including Alternative 3, click here… 

For an overview of (SJC) proposed dollar allocations towards Utilities, Public Works, and Infracture, through 2015, click here…

An enhanced interchange has been a longtime priority to help improve traffic flow in town. The interchange has long been a source of contention, as motorists are forced daily to inch their way through heavy congestion – particularly during the morning and afternoon commute. The interchange, which is considered a “choke point,” needs improvements because conditions are expected to get worse as South County’s population and development continues to grow.
 
The project is next expected to move into the design phase, which will take about 18 months to complete. The construction phase could start sometime in 2012.