California 905 is the partially complete, east-west connector between the San Ysidro and Otay Mesa Ports of Entry (POE). California 905 is completely signed for its entire constructed length, including the temporary expressway section between Interstate 805 and site of the future California 125/905 interchange. California 905 can be divided into four segments:
Segment One - The unconstructed section between the International Border near Border Field State Park - this segment passes through some environmentally sensitive areas and will likely never be constructed.
Segement Two - Between the Interstate 5/California 905 junction and one-half mile east of the Interstate 805/California 905 junction; this is the only complete freeway section.
Segment Three - The temporary expressway portion between one-half mile east of Interstate 805 and the future California 125 junction. This segment will be replaced by a freeway scheduled to open between 2006 and 2008.
Segment Four - The conventional multi-lane divided (not freeway) section between the future California 125 junction and the Otay Mesa border crossing and Port of Entry.
California 905 History
1975. California 117 freeway under construction between Interstate 5 and Interstate 805. Plans call for the freeway to continue eastward to the Otay Mesa Port of Entry.
1984. California 905 commissioned to replace California 117, which was previously part of California 75. Designation is changed to reflect future plans to add California 905 into the Interstate Highway System. Since Otay Mesa Road between I-805 and the future California 11-125 interchange is not maintained by Caltrans, this section is not signed as California 905.
1997-1999. The City of San Diego widens the existing Otay Mesa Road as a stop-gap measure until the full freeway is built parallel to and south of Otay Mesa Road. After this construction is completed, Otay Mesa Road will be maintained by the state until after the freeway is constructed in the new century.
1998. California 905 included in High Priority Corridor 30 in the hopes the designation would bring additional funding for the upgraded border crossing and freeway.
1999Environmental Impact Reports are completed for the future 905 freeway.
Spring 2000. Work is completed on interim, temporary California 905 expressway along Otay Mesa Road between Old Otay Mesa Road just east of Interstate 805 to the future California 11-125 freeway interchange. This new expressway is built to Caltrans standards, with six lanes, Botts Dots, standard signage, and a special fence-like median strip to prevent pedestrians from attempting to cross the highway. Signalized intersections with protected left turns are installed at Heritage/Otay Valley Road, Cactus Road, Britannia Boulevard, Alisa Court, La Media Road, and Otay Mesa Road near the future California 125 interchange/connector. Planning continues for a permanent Interstate 905 freeway south but parallel to the existing California 905 expressway. Traffic continues to escalate as all trucks must use the Otay Mesa Border Crossing. The freeway segment is planned to begin between 2000 and 2004, according to the 2000 SANDAG Regional Transportation Plan.
California 905 Guide
Prior to Spring 2000, California 905 existed in two segments. One was the freeway segment between Interstate 5/Tocayo Road and 1/2 mile east of Interstate 805, and the other was the multi-lane conventional highway between the future California 125 interchange and the Otay Mesa Port of Entry. During that time, the City of San Diego maintained Otay Mesa Road between the two segments of state highway.
In an agreement inked between the City of San Diego and Caltrans from 1998, the City would pay to upgrade Otay Mesa Road to six lanes with turning lanes by the end of 1999, and Caltrans would maintain the road as a state facility until the California 905 freeway is built. Construction was completed in early 2000, and signs for California 905 were erected shortly thereafter.
Planning continues for the future California 905 freeway between 1/2 mile east of Interstate 805 and the future California 11-125 junction. Plans call for a six-lane freeway that will remove international truck and vacation traffic from Otay Mesa Road. Early estimates indicate that this road will cost $220 million, but they were raised to $255 million in 2000. Plans call for project to begin prior to 2004. SANDAG forecasts call for an average of 70,000 to 100,000 vehicles to use the road per day.
Once the California 905 freeway is constructed, it will be redesignated as Interstate 905, per an agreement between the FHWA, Caltrans, and SANDAG.
A Temporary Solution to Filling the California 905 Gap
The controversy surrounding California 905 is the completion of the missing freeway link of Segment Three. City of San Diego officials constructed the interim expressway as a temporary fix to close the gap. The original Otay Mesa Road was an under-developed City street that became California's busiest trade route with Mexico. People wanted Otay Mesa Road upgraded to expressway or freeway status for several reasons:
The road was designed for a maximum of 35,000 vehicles a day, but traffic often exceeds 50,000 vehicles.
Since 1990, 25 people have been killed and 350 others injured on the five-mile eastern stretch of Otay Mesa Road that runs just south of the Brown Field cargo airport and across rolling hills, between Interstate 805 and the Mexican border.
The Federal Government opened the Otay Mesa Port of Entry, approved the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA), and shifted all cross-border truck traffic onto the road in a span of fifteen years. Prior to these actions, Otay Mesa Road only handled 4,300 vehicles per day.
As a short-term solution (in lieu of a full freeway), the City of San Diego and Caltrans appropriated $17 million in Fiscal Year 1998 to widen Otay Mesa Road to three lanes each way, add a concrete median, and widen the shoulders. This was approved in December of 1994. The City and Caltrans hoped to begin work immediately thereafter (in 1995), but an Environmental Impact Study was required. Construction did not begin until August 1997, and it was delayed at several points. It was completed by late 1999/early 2000.
By 2015, it is expected that the widened and improved California 905/Otay Mesa Road expressway will be inadequate for the demands placed on that road, so Caltrans is planning for a freeway-grade road to be constructed by 2004.
Reasons to Build the California 905 Freeway
Meanwhile, local politicians are working to secure money to build the future California 905 freeway, which would parallel the existing Otay Mesa Road and provide six- to eight-lanes of traffic between Interstate 805 and California 125. Former San Diego Mayor Susan Golding said federal funding is sorely needed to extend California 905 to the Otay Mesa border crossing in the mid-1990s. In August 1997, U.S. Representative (Pa.) Bud Shuster, chairman of the House Transportation Committee, visited the border region and pledged to help secure money to complete the California 905 freeway. Route 905 was listed as a High Priority Corridor in BESTEA, the House-approved ISTEA Reauthorization bill, and it was finally added to the final TEA-21 bill signed into law in 1998.
Funding for the California 905 freeway has been difficult to obtain. In the mid-1990s, state and federal officials weren't even sure whether to build a $130 million four-lane expressway or a $255 million six-lane freeway (figures as of 2000 SANDAG Regional Transportation Plan). The feasibility study and Major Investment Study for the 905 freeway was completed in spring 1998, and the Environmental Impact Study was made public in 1999. Upon completion, California 905 will be designated as Interstate 905, as part of an obligation that is included in an agreement between the FHWA and the State of California.
However, decisions have since been made that have already completed the expressway, and a freeway plan has been approved for four key reasons:
Otay Mesa POE. The only border crossing trucks may use in southwestern San Diego County is the Otay Mesa crossing. The San Ysidro (Interstate 5/805) POE prohibits trucks. There are signs telling truckers to take California 905 to cross the border. Otay Mesa Road's congestion is caused by a higher than expected accident rate as a result of trucks having to use the Otay Mesa POE to enter and exit Mexico. Compounding the problem is the relatively high rate of trucks (16% is considered high for a city street). The increased truck traffic on an inadequate road impedes border access.
Industrial Area. Otay Mesa is a primarily industrial area. Widening Otay Mesa Road to six lanes is a temporary solution with short-term relief. A full freeway is needed to handle maquiladora traffic and increased commercial activity projected in the Otay Mesa area. Right across the border, Mexican maquiladoras are churning out all kinds of products that are shipped to the U.S. and other countries. Currently the trucks serving those factories must use the Otay Mesa POE or go to the Tecate (California 188) or Calexico (California 7) crossings via the Mexican 2-D Cuota (Toll Road). Mexico Route 2-D is the Mexican toll road that parallels the border between Tijuana and Mexicali. It is the Mexican equivalent of Interstate 8, except Interstate 8 is free of tolls.
NAFTA. Officials expect a sharp increase in truck traffic due to the North American Free Trade Agreement, or NAFTA. They see commerce between the two countries increasing dramatically "as the barriers come down." Average daily traffic is currently 44,000 vehicles per day; it is expected to rise to 68,000 by 2020. Border crossings at Otay Mesa are expected to triple during that period, to 85,000 crossings in 2005 and 230,000 crossings in 2020.
Brown Field. The Brown Field airport is located along Route 905 just west of the Otay Mesa POE. This is important because the airport is being expanded, with plans to dramatically increase its cargo load. As Lindbergh Field (San Diego International Airport) gets busier and busier, Brown Field has picked up a lot of the slack. I would not be surprised if Brown Field ends up with quite a bit of the cargo load after the expansion is complete, because Lindbergh is too busy as it is. Many seem to think that Otay Mesa would be a great place to build a replacement airport should planners decide Lindbergh is not big enough to accommodate the increasing passenger air traffic. This idea of a border-area airport is not new. "TwinPorts," a proposal that proposed a major binational airport with around 400 passenger flights a day, was advocated in the 1980s, but the Brown Field proposal does not include additional passenger flights.
In conclusion, California 905 is considered necessary both for a current safety need and also for a future transportation need. It is part of an intermodal plan for the border region -- the planned San Diego and Imperial Valley Railroad (SD&IV) is supposed to have a link directly to the Otay Mesa area, including Brown Field. It's a great setup for an TEA-21 intermodal facility.
Eastbound California 905
Eastbound California 905 approaching Exit 1, Beyer Boulevard. Beyer Boulevard, which parallels Interstate 5, is the original alignment of U.S. 101 through the San Ysidro and Otay Mesa-Nestor communities in south San Diego. Photo taken 12/15/02.
Eastbound California 905 at Exit 1, Beyer Boulevard. The next exit is Picador Boulevard/Smythe Avenue. Photo taken 12/15/02.
Eastbound California 905 approaches Exit 2A, Picador Boulevard/Smythe Avenue. The next exit is Junction Interstate 805. Photo taken 12/15/02.
Eastbound California 905 reaches Exit 2A, Picador Boulevard/Smythe Avenue. Near this interchange are the "Cuidado" (Warning) signs for pedestrians running across the freeway. Similar signs are placed on Interstate 5 near the San Ysidro Port of Entry as well as at the Border Patrol Checkpoint within Camp Pendleton between the Las Pulgas Road and Gunnery Sergeant John Basilone Road exits near San Onofre. Because of their popularity, these yellow signs are frequently the target of theft. Photo taken 12/15/02.
Eastbound California 905 approaches Exit 2B, Junction Interstate 805. Photo taken 12/15/02.
Eastbound California 905 reaches Exit 2B, Junction Interstate 805. Photo taken 12/15/02.
Westbound California 905
Westbound California 905 at Exit 2B, Junction Interstate 805 along the transition ramp. This kind of sign is generally not used for freeway-to-freeway connections, so it is a bit substandard. Photo taken 12/15/02.
Westbound California 905 approaching Exit 1C, Beyer Boulevard, one-half mile. The following exit is Exit 1B, Junction Interstate 5 Southbound/Tocayo Avenue Westbound/Oro Vista Road and Exit 1A, Northbound Interstate 5. Photo taken 09/06/03.
Westbound California 905 at Exit 1C, Beyer Boulevard. Photo taken 09/06/03.
Westbound California 905 at Exit 1B, South Interstate 5 and Oro Vista Road/Tocayo Avenue. Photo taken 09/06/03.
Other California 905 Photos
Westbound Airway Drive approaching Junction California 905. These signs are notable because they feature "Tijuana" as a control city and because they have a non-standard California 905 shield with white post. Photos taken 12/15/02.
