New East-West Corridor Interchange
City of Victorville, SANBAG

The City of Victorville, and the entire Victor Valley, has grown exponentially in the last decade. However, their infrastructure has not. The area’s 350,000 residents use three major thoroughfares: Interstate 15, Bear Valley Road, and Palmdale Road. With I-15 running north and south, Bear Valley and Palmdale road serve as the only east-west corridors. Three arteries for so many people created a traffic bottleneck in the traffic flow for the region, impacting trade and commerce as well as quality of life for the residents.

However, that will soon be changing. Due to the dedicated and persistent work of the Victorville’s Mayor, City Manager, Public Works department, and others; construction on a new overpass is now under way. Soon the overpass will connect two additional roads, thereby creating a third east-west artery for the flow of traffic.

Facing tight deadlines due to federal funding, the City of Victorville had to work closely with the San Bernardino Associated Governments, environmental groups, and state agencies to expedite the design, CEQA, and permitting processes.

The full‐service interchange will play a vital role in the City’s infrastructure. The two‐span, cast‐in‐place, post‐tensioned concrete overcrossing will provide three through-lanes in each direction, additional turn lanes at the freeway ramp connections, and accommodate future expansions of I‐15 to up to 10 lanes – including four mixed‐flow and one high‐occupancy vehicle (HOV) lane in each direction.

“Providing another east‐west corridor in the Victor Valley has been a critical need for years,” said Brad Mitzelfelt, SANBAG Vice-President and First District Supervisor. “And we’re about to see it become a reality.”

The project has been on the City’s wish list for years, but recently made a great deal of headway in starting construction. Since originally envisioned, the City has been responsible for preparing: the preliminary design; environmental document; final design; environmental permits; plans, specifications and estimates; acquiring rights‐of‐ way; and relocating utilities.

This project received cooperation and partnership among multiple federal and state agencies:
Caltrans, in cooperation with the City has provided oversight and approval for all project phases.
U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, Lahontan Regional Water Quality Control Board (RWQCB) and the California Department of Fish and Game all worked cooperatively with the City and Caltrans to obtain the required regulatory permits.

“I think once it came to a vote at SANBAG, we had full support,” said Victorville Mayor Ryan McEachron. “That’s no small task in and of itself.”

That’s because the SANBAG board has five Board of Supervisor members and 24 city representatives. But the vote was unanimous.

SANBAG provided 50 percent of the funding through a local tax measure and awards from the California Transportation Commission. Now it appears that the project will be completed well under budget. The winning bid had the interchange coming $18 million lower than engineer estimates.

The plans have even managed to reduce impacts to a natural wash and tributary to the Mojave River that runs through the interchange. That not only protects the environment, but will also increase the area’s ability to handle flash flooding – a constant danger in the arid community that can often see 95% of its average yearly rainfall come in a single month.

But some of the best implications for local residents will be the jobs that the interchange provides – both directly through construction and indirectly through an increase in commerce. It’s estimated that the overpass will create 650 direct jobs and 1,625 indirect jobs – with more than 70 percent coming from construction, manufacturing, and wholesale and retail trade sectors.

The nomination, which was submitted by Victorville City Manager Douglas Robertson, mentioned “the significant benefits to the public include improved safety, reduced congestion, economic improvement, and environmental protection.”

It is a sentiment reinforced by Mayor McEachron. “This interchange will reduce gridlock in the City, and will provide emergency personnel an additional arterial to travel from the east to the west side of the City.”

For its accomplishments in economic development, environmental protection, and improvements in the quality of life for the area’s residents, the I-15 Interchange in the Victor Valley has been awarded the 2011 PublicCEO Public Works Project of the Year.