Countywide : Closed Lane Causes Traffic Tie-Ups
Morning and evening rush-hour traffic was snarled Monday near the transition road from the eastbound Riverside Freeway to the northbound Orange Freeway. One lane of the two-lane overpass remained closed in the aftermath of a weekend traffic accident.
“Things were pretty tight there,” said California Highway Patrol Officer Angel Johnson. “Apparently motorists didn’t realize that one of the lanes was closed until the last minute.”
The CHP and Caltrans closed both lanes of the overpass Saturday after a big rig hauling two 13-ton rolls of coiled steel overturned. The rolls gouged craters four feet wide and two feet deep in the pavement. No one was injured.
After emergency repairs were made, Caltrans reopened one of the lanes Sunday night.
Johnson said one lane cannot handle all the traffic, estimated at 421,000 vehicles daily, that passes through the interchange. Johnson said, however, that CHP officers reported having fewer problems there Monday than they expected.
The damaged overpass lane will remain closed until repairs are completed, Johnson said.
Caltrans put up signs Monday along the eastbound Riverside Freeway warning motorists about the temporary closure.
“It’ll be a matter of time before the motorists take some of the alternative routes to bypass the interchange,” Johnson said.
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