About the Project Area
The project area is located next to the cities of Irvine and Tustin. The project limits are bordered by I-405 on the south and SR-55 on the north. This nine-mile stretch of I-5 has interchanges connecting with SR-133 and SR-55. Additionally, it provides direct access to seven major west-east surface streets, including Sand Canyon Avenue, Jamboree Road and Red Hill Avenue, among others. Centrally located, the project area neighbors renowned residential communities with culturally diverse populations, nationally-recognized schools, major retail centers, as well as numerous leading employers.
Project Area Map
Proposed Alternatives
No Build Alternative - Alternative 1
The No Build Alternative proposes no capital or operational improvements and no improvements or enhancements would be designed or constructed. The "No Build Alternative" is considered a baseline to measure and compare the proposed Build Alternative and its design variations.
Alternative 2 – with Design Variation A and Design Variation B
Alternative 2 includes two design variations, Design Variation A and B.
Alternative 2 with Design Variation A is called Alternative 2A.
Alternative 2 with Design Variation B is called Alternative 2B.
The two design variations (2A and 2B) propose to add one general-purpose lane and improve operational deficiencies in each direction.
In general, the major difference between Alternative 2A and 2B is
- One design variation has reduced lane and shoulder widths at several constrained locations.
- The second design variation generally has standard 12 ft lane width and 10 ft shoulder width throughout the corridor, which would require a wider freeway and impact more residences and businesses adjacent to freeway and significantly increase cost.
OCTA and Caltrans are currently considering design exceptions to minimize project footprint and impacts.
Project Deliverables
Consistent with the passage of OC Go (formerly known as Measure M) the Orange County Transportation Authority (OCTA) and the California Department of Transportation (Caltrans) District 12, in partnership with the cities of Irvine and Tustin, are proposing to improve this segment of I-5 by:
- Adding one general-purpose (regular) lane in each direction
- Adding auxiliary (on- and off-ramp merge) lanes
- Modifying ramp configurations for nine select interchanges
- Braiding the northbound Sand Canyon Avenue on-ramp and southbound SR-133 to northbound I-5 connector with the northbound Jeffrey Road off-ramp
- Converting existing buffer-separated HOV (carpool) lanes to continuous access HOV lanes
Project Purpose and Need
Currently, the I-5 corridor within the project limits experiences congestion and long traffic delays due to travel demand exceeding roadway capacity. The purpose of the project is to relieve congestion by increasing capacity and improving traffic operations to meet existing and future traffic demand.
Project Objectives
- Increase capacity on I-5 from I-405 to SR-55 in both northbound and southbound directions
- Optimize access between the mainline (regular lanes) and the existing HOV lane
- Improve operational deficiencies of merge, diverge and weaving areas
Environmental Study
This roadway is already at capacity and traffic projections show that nearly ½ million motorists will use this stretch of I-5 by 2050. In order to move forward with a project to improve I-5, OCTA and Caltrans are conducting the Project Approval/Environmental Document (PA/ED) process for the I-5 Irvine & Tustin Improvements Project.
The PA/ED phase is commonly referred to as the environmental process. This process includes preliminary engineering and numerous environmental/technical studies. The purpose is to measure the estimated operational benefits as well as the potential environmental effects of adding a new general-purpose (regular) lane in each direction of I-5, as well as various other capital and operational improvements to I-5 adjacent to the cities of Irvine and Tustin.
As part of the environmental process, environmental and traffic studies were prepared to:
- Determine what impacts, if any, the alternatives might have on the environment
- Develop measures to avoid, minimize and/or mitigate these impacts, where feasible
- Measure performance outcomes
Availability of Study Results
Caltrans' and OCTA's studies have concluded that the project will not significantly impact the quality of the environment. The report that explains these findings is called an Initial Study/Environmental Assessment (IS/EA) with Mitigated Negative Declaration (MND)/Finding of No Significant Impact (FONSI).
The project's draft environmental document was circulated for public review and comment from May 8 to June 8, 2018. Moving forward, the project development team will recommend a Preferred Alternative, which is subject to review and approval by District Director for Caltrans District 12 – Orange County. In addition to the study findings, stakeholder feedback is considered when identifying a Preferred Alternative. If approved by Caltrans District 12, a Preferred Alternative would likely move into Final Design/Right-of-Way and subsequently construction.
Estimated Cost & Funding
This study begin in late 2014 and is anticipated to be completed by late 2018. The total estimated project cost is approximately $480 million to $960 million (current dollars), depending on the alternative. The environmental review process is funded by OC Go, formerly Measure M, Orange County's voter-approved Transportation Investment Plan. The voters of Orange County renewed OC Go with nearly 70% of the vote in November 2006.
The environmental study process is funded by OC Go, formerly Measure M, Orange County's voter-approved Transportation Investment Plan. The voters of Orange County renewed OC Go, formerly Measure M, with nearly 70% of the vote in November 2006.