Ways to Ease Interchange Bottleneck Studied : Transportation: Alternative routes and longer green lights are planned during bridge construction at Moorpark and Ventura freeways.

Traffic jams on the bridge linking the Moorpark and Ventura freeways have dumped hordes of commuters onto Thousand Oaks streets, prompting traffic engineers to recommend alternative routes and lengthening the green lights at nearby intersections.

Since Monday, when contractors for the state Department of Transportation began retrofitting Ventura County’s busiest freeway bridge and limiting southbound traffic to one lane, cars have been backed up on the Moorpark Freeway as far as Janss Road.

To help ease congestion through the construction period--expected to last through the end of the year--Thousand Oaks traffic engineers Thursday lengthened the green lights at the Janss Road off-ramp from the Moorpark Freeway so cars coming off the freeway will not be backed up so far.

They also lengthened the green light at Hillcrest Drive and are considering changes at intersections along Thousand Oaks Boulevard at Hampshire and Rancho roads to clear the way for the thousands of motorists heading to the Ventura Freeway.

“It’s basically a balancing act to try and help one side but not negatively impact the regular traffic,” said Roy Myers, a Thousand Oaks transportation analyst.

Caltrans crews began retrofitting the Moorpark-Ventura freeway interchange earlier this week, one of more than 130 retrofitting projects to meet tougher seismic standards under way around the state.

Contractors will deepen and enlarge the bridge footings, reinforce the hinges between sections of the bridge and encase the columns in steel jackets.

“All of this will keep the bridge from moving or being bounced to the ground in the event of an earthquake,” Caltrans spokesman Russ Snyder said.

More than 88,000 drivers use the interchange every day, making it the most-traveled freeway bridge in Ventura County, Snyder said.

A $1.5-million contract awarded earlier this summer to Heritage Engineering of Pomona includes upcoming retrofitting projects at the Wendy Drive and Borchard Road crossings of the Ventura Freeway.

The second and third phases of the retrofitting project are expected to be completed by late spring. Caltrans and Thousand Oaks engineers are recommending several alternative routes to keep cars moving more smoothly around town during the five-month construction.

Traffic officials said the best routes from the Moorpark Freeway south to Los Angeles are east on Janss Road, then south on Erbes Road to the Ventura Freeway. Or, drivers can proceed east on Thousand Oaks Boulevard to Westlake Boulevard, entering the freeway at that ramp.

“We really want to help alleviate congestion because [the Moorpark Freeway] is down to one lane,” Caltrans spokeswoman Margie Tiritilli said. “By resetting the two off-ramp signals and providing the alternate routes, we hope to minimize the inconvenience to drivers.”

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