California State Route 55
The California State Route 55 ( SR 55 or 55 CA for short ) is an axis extending in a north-south direction State Route in the U.S. state of California. The 18 miles (30 km) long road begins and ends at the Newport Beach California State Route 91 in Anaheim. It is also known as the Costa Mesa Freeway.
The road is part of the California Freeway and Expressway System.
Course
The California State Route 55 takes in the coastal town of Newport Beach, near the intersection with California State Route 1 (Pacific Coast Highway ) began. The southern section is followed by the Newport Boulevard to the intersection with 17th Street in Costa Mesa. Until the 19th Street, the road crosses an industrial area. There, the CA 55 widened to eight lanes and becomes a crossing-free Costa Mesa Freeway. On the remaining distance to the northern terminus, the road runs partly increases or cuts.
The CA 55 is a busy highway that links the northern coastal region of Orange County, among others, Interstate 405, Interstate 5 and California State Route 91. While the I-405 opens up the western part of the Greater Los Angeles Area, I-5 is the main north -south highway in the state of California. The CA 91, however, provides the connection to the so-called Inland Empire region.
Due to the many commuters the connection is often overloaded. Daily drive on average 262,000 cars and 17,292 trucks the expressway.
History
The road was originally built in 1931 and designated as State Route 43. It led to today's course afield to Riverside. In 1951 the road was redrawn in California State Route 55 and cut down to its present length. The entire route was until 1976 the name Newport Freeway, but was renamed in Costa Mesa Freeway.
The California State Route 55 was the first freeway in Orange County, who received HOV lanes in 1985. Another section with HOV lanes between Fair Drive and 19th Street was opened in 1990. In April 2007, the Orange County Transportation Authority ( OCTA ) for a study of a broadening of the route up to 17th Street in order.