Bluff Heights Neighborhood Association, Inc.

West County Connectors:
SR-22/I-405 Segment To Enter Construction This Summer;
I-405/I-605 Segment This Fall

The California Department of Transportation (Caltrans) is undergoing the selection process to hire a contractor for the construction of the SR-22/I-405 segment of the West County Connectors Project (WCC), which is expected to begin this summer. The project area is from Valley View Street to just east of Seal Beach Boulevard. Caltrans is expected to award the construction contract in May.

In April, the Orange County Transportation Authority (OCTA) received state funding for the I-405/I-605 segment, which begins at Seal Beach Boulevard. Caltrans is expected to award the construction contract for this segment in August and construction is scheduled to begin this fall.

"We are looking forward to seeing this vital transportation project get under way to bring relief to drivers in Orange County and provide much-needed jobs for the construction sector," said OCTA Chairman Jerry Amante, who is also mayor of Tustin. "Creating employment opportunities through infrastructure projects like the West County Connectors is a critical component in rebuilding our economy."

Low Bids to Benefit Taxpayers
As part of the construction contractor selection process, Caltrans opened bids for construction of the

SR-22/I-405 segment on April 15 and learned that the apparent lowest bid for the project was $65.8 million which is 39 percent below the original engineer's estimate. Eleven bids were submitted with seven of the bids less than $70 million. The low bids represent a significant savings for OCTA and Orange County taxpayers. The contract will be awarded in May once Caltrans completes its bid analysis.

Community Members Welcome to Attend May and June Open Houses

OCTA will hold several more open houses throughout the communities in late May and June to share the latest project updates and detour information. These open houses will be located in:

Garden Grove
Westminster
Seal Beach
Leisure World
Rossmoor
Long Beach

OCTA will provide dates, times and specific locations as the information becomes available.

WCC Project Will Improve Freeway Connections
Now that OCTA has completed the final design phase of the WCC, Caltrans will oversee the construction of the project. The project is designed to link carpool lanes on the I-405 with those on the Garden Grove Freeway (SR-22) and San Gabriel River Freeway (I-605), creating a continuous connection of HOV lanes among the three freeways.

The WCC project will:

Construct direct carpool connectors at the SR-22/I-405 and I-405/I-605
Add a second carpool lane in each direction on I-405 between SR-22 and the I-605
Eliminate weaving across general purpose lanes to and from carpool lanes
Reconstruct Valley View St. and Seal Beach Blvd. and on- and off-ramps
Construct soundwalls and retaining walls in various locations
Add landscaping and enhance aesthetic elements

The WCC Project is organized into two segments just east of the Seal Beach Boulevard Bridge. With the construction contract for the east segment planned to be awarded in May, construction is anticipated to start this summer. Motorists will initially begin to see crews removing vegetation and some railing as well as the staging of construction equipment in preparation for breaking ground on the project.

7th Street Detour Map

Other Proposed Detours

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