New Signs Up at Dangerous I-5 Interchange

Three weeks after two drivers were killed on a hazardous freeway interchange, Caltrans installed larger speed-limit signs and posted an additional warning for motorists approaching the busy freeway connector in Fullerton.

Caltrans officials said they hoped the changes made late Wednesday night in the construction zone at the Santa Ana and Riverside freeways would slow fast-moving cars as they merge in traffic.

Transit officials in Orange County said they were glad the state Department of Transportation took action.

“These improvements should make traffic safer through the area for everyone,” said John Standiford, spokesman for the Orange County Transportation Authority.

The interchange construction is part of the $1 billion widening of the Santa Ana Freeway that the agency is funding.

The signs were added in the wake of a fiery tanker-truck crash on March 12 that closed portions of the Santa Ana Freeway for hours.

Officers at the scene said it was one of the most gruesome accidents in memory. One victim, Sarkis Kostanian, 35, of Glendale was burned so badly it took investigators two days to confirm his identity.

Witnesses told officers the truck driver was going faster than the posted 25 mph speed limit when his 8,000-gallon fuel truck toppled onto Kostanian’s car and exploded.

His widow, Anait Kostanian, 25, said Thursday she is too upset about the crash to talk and referred questions to her lawyer.

“I loved my husband, and now I am worried about how I am going to raise my baby,” she said. She was left with a 3-year-old daughter.

Her attorney, Marty Dakessian of Glendale, would not comment.

A final police report on the accident is expected this month, California Highway Patrol officials said.

The crash was the latest in a string of accidents at the interchange, where the number of collisions has more than doubled in the two years since the reconstruction began.

CHP records show that 33 accidents--including 10 involving trucks--have occurred at the interchange since 1997. In the three years before the roadwork began, there were 14 accidents, none involving trucks.

The reconstruction resulted in detours that require drivers to contend with sharp curves, narrow lanes and slow traffic.

Caltrans officials said motorists have complained they are confused by the connector ramp leading from the westbound Riverside Freeway to the northbound Santa Ana Freeway, which exits to the left. Those complaints led the agency to install additional directional signs late last year.

This week, Caltrans added a larger-than-usual 25-mph speed limit sign to the three already posted on the westbound Riverside Freeway just before the interchange. It also replaced the existing three with larger signs. In addition, two signs showing a curve in the road were added, each topped with a flashing beacon. A sign alerting motorists to merging traffic ahead also was posted on the northbound Santa Ana Freeway near the junction.

The twisting configuration of the connector road, part of several temporary exits planned for use during construction, should be replaced with a straighter route in 30 to 60 days, said Caltrans spokeswoman Rose Orem.

A new freeway connector should be completed by the end of the year; it will allow motorists to exit on the right. A left-side exit is unusual in Orange County, road officials said.

“We’re continuing to focus on the completion of the construction project, which will be a big improvement in terms of mobility and safety in the area,” Standiford said.

The project is scheduled to be completed in two years.

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Slowing Drivers Down

Three weeks after two drivers were killed in a fiery tanker-truck crash, Caltrans installed larger speed-limit signs and posted an additional warning for motorists circumnavigating the busy Santa Ana-Riverside freeway interchange. Caltrans officials said they hoped the changes would slow traffic and give ample warning about merging traffic.

Speed limit sign with flashing beacon

Speed limit, curve ahead signs with flashing beacon

Merging traffic sign

Transition: westbound 91 to northbound 5

Westbound Riverside Fwy.

Northbound 5 Fwy.

Larger Signs

Old - 24” x 24”

New - 30” x 30”

Source: Caltrans