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Ventura Freeway

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For the song, see Ventura Highway.

U.S. Route 101 marker
State Route 134 marker
Ventura Freeway
Map
SR 134 highlighted in red; US 101 in blue
Route information
Maintained by Caltrans
Component
highways		 US 101 from the Santa Barbara/Ventura county line[1] to North Hollywood
SR 1 (unsigned) from the Santa Barbara/Ventura county line to Sea Cliff, and from Solimar Beach to Oxnard
SR 134 from North Hollywood to Pasadena
Major junctions
West end US 101 at the Santa Barbara–Ventura county line
Major intersections SR 33 in Ventura
SR 126 in Ventura
SR 1 in Oxnard
SR 23 in Thousand Oaks
I-405 in Sherman Oaks
US 101 / SR 134 / SR 170 in North Hollywood
I-5 in Los Angeles
SR 2 at the Los Angeles–Glendale line
East end I-210 in Pasadena
Location
CountryUnited States
StateCalifornia
CountiesVentura, Los Angeles
Highway system
Southern California freeways
← SR 133→ SR 135
State Route 134 marker
State Route 134
LocationPasadena–Los Angeles
Length14 mi[2] (23 km)
Existed1957–present

The Ventura Freeway is a freeway in southern California, United States, that runs from the Santa Barbara/Ventura county line[1] to Pasadena in Los Angeles County. It is the principal east–west route (designated north–south) through Ventura County and in the southern San Fernando Valley in Los Angeles County. From the Santa Barbara County line to its intersection with the Hollywood Freeway in the southeastern San Fernando Valley in Los Angeles (the Hollywood Split), it is signed as U.S. Route 101 (US 101), which was built in the late 1950s and opened on April 5, 1960.[3] The segments from the Santa Barbara County line to Sea Cliff, and from Solimar Beach to Oxnard, are also concurrent with State Route 1 (SR 1), although no signs mention SR 1 there. East of the Hollywood Freeway intersection, the Ventura Freeway is signed as State Route 134 (SR 134), which was built by 1971.

Before the construction of a new alignment in 1971, the portion east of the Golden State Freeway was known as the Colorado Freeway after nearby Colorado Boulevard, a historic thoroughfare in Pasadena and northeastern Los Angeles.

Route description

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U.S. Route 101

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The Ventura Freeway begins at the Santa Barbara/Ventura county line, west of La Conchita, as US 101. It travels eastward through the citrus orchards and strawberry fields of the Oxnard Plain before ascending the short, steep Conejo Grade into the Conejo Valley. Continuing eastward through the northern Santa Monica Mountains, it crosses the Ventura/Los Angeles county line before entering the San Fernando Valley. The freeway continues eastward along the valley's southern rim, crossing the San Diego Freeway (Interstate 405) near Sherman Oaks at an interchange consistently rated as one of the five most congested in the nation. It then reaches an interchange with the Hollywood Freeway known as the Hollywood Split. Here, the US 101 designation switches to the southeast-bound Hollywood Freeway, while the Ventura Freeway becomes SR 134 as it continues eastward. The northwest-bound portion of the Hollywood Freeway is designated as SR 170.

The westernmost portion of the freeway also forms part of the unsigned SR 1 concurrency that stretches from Las Cruces in the west to Oxnard in the east, with SR 1 spitting off for about 6 miles (9.7 km) to serve Sea Cliff, Faria, Solimar Beach, and Emma Wood State Beach.

The portion of the Ventura Freeway signed as US 101 is signed as a north–south route by CalTrans despite the freeway's actual alignment being east–west. This is due to the fact that US 101 as a whole has an overall north–south alignment. The apparent inconsistency can be confusing to visitors, as the same freeway entrance can often be signed as "101 North" and "101 West." This is most common in the San Fernando Valley.

California State Route 134

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The SR 134 portion of the Ventura Freeway at the western edge of Burbank, California looking west from N Pass Ave.
The Ventura Freeway crosses the Los Angeles River at its confluence with Verdugo Wash
Westbound SR 134 in Glendale approaching I-5

Continuing eastward from the Hollywood Split as SR 134, the Ventura Freeway, now signed as east–west, skirts the northern edge of Griffith Park before intersecting the Golden State Freeway (I-5) and crossing the Los Angeles River. After passing through Downtown Glendale south of the Verdugo Mountains, it continues along the southern slope of the San Rafael Hills between Glendale and Eagle Rock before entering Pasadena near the Arroyo Seco and terminating at the Foothill Freeway (I-210).

The road is the main connector from the San Fernando Valley and points north to the San Gabriel Valley and points east. The future I-710 dead-ends at California Blvd and is signed as SR 710. Residents of South Pasadena have blocked efforts to extend I-710 north to California Boulevard from its current end at Valley Boulevard north of I-10 near the Alhambra/Los Angeles city limit. Signs on SR 134 and I-210 refer to the SR 710 stub in Pasadena as TO SR 110, because exiting left from the SR 710 stub onto California Blvd and turning right on Arroyo Parkway leads directly to SR 110, which is Pasadena's only direct freeway link to Downtown Los Angeles.

Both the SR 134 and US 101 portions of the freeway are part of the California Freeway and Expressway System,[4] and is part of the National Highway System,[5] a network of highways that are considered essential to the country's economy, defense, and mobility by the Federal Highway Administration.[6]

History

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See also: Ventura Boulevard

History of State Route 134

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A pre-freeway alignment of State Route 134 originated at U.S. Route 101 (Ventura Boulevard) and Fulton Avenue in Los Angeles, then along Fulton, Moorpark Street, Riverside Drive and Alameda Avenue before meeting up with U.S. 6/99 (San Fernando Road) in Burbank. It traveled along San Fernando Road to Colorado Street, then ran along Colorado Street (portions of which have been renamed Eagle Vista Drive) through Glendale, Eagle Rock and Pasadena before terminating at U.S. Route 66. The alignment was later cut back to terminate in Studio City at Lankershim and Ventura.

The Interstate 5 off-ramp at Colorado Street is actually a former routing of SR 134, and there are still mileposts that refer to it as such. Old SR 134 followed Colorado Street through Glendale and Colorado Boulevard in Eagle Rock to the ramp connecting Colorado Boulevard and Figueroa Street to the Ventura Freeway. Old SR 134 continued onto the ramp and then onto what is presently the Ventura Freeway to Orange Grove Boulevard in Pasadena. The Colorado Boulevard/Figueroa Street ramps plus the segment of freeway between the ramps and just east of Orange Grove Boulevard were previously known as the Colorado Freeway.

From 1964 to 1992, the Colorado Boulevard portions of Route 134 were renumbered as California State Route 248.

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Sign marking the "Screaming Eagles Highway"

The official Ventura Freeway designation is Routes 101 and 134 from Route 5 to the Santa Barbara County line.[1] This does not include the portion of Route 134 between Route 5 and Route 210 even though local usage extends the name over this portion of freeway. At the freeway's eastern terminus with Interstate 210 in Pasadena, highway signs indicate "Ventura" as the destination direction for Route 134.

The interchange of SR 134 and I-5 is officially the "Gene Autry Memorial Interchange", after the singing cowboy superstar Gene Autry. Autry's Museum of the American West is located near the interchange in Griffith Park.

Assembly Concurrent Resolution 54, Chapter 85 in 2003 also designated Route 101 in Ventura County as the "Screaming Eagles Highway".[7] This honors the 101st Airborne Division of the United States Army, which formed on July 23, 1918 and has been involved in every major war that the United States has participated in since then.[8]

The California Legislature passed a resolution in 2017 to designate the easternmost segment of the SR 134 freeway between SR 2 and its terminus at I-210 as the "President Barack H. Obama Highway", in honor of the 44th U.S. President Barack Obama, who had attended Occidental College in Eagle Rock from 1979 to 1981.[9] Signs were posted on December 20, 2018.[10]

Projects

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The proposed Wallis Annenberg Wildlife Crossing is a vegetated overpass spanning the Ventura Freeway and Agoura Road at Liberty Canyon in Agoura Hills. When built, it will be one of the largest urban wildlife crossing in the United States, connecting the Simi Hills and the Santa Monica Mountains over a busy freeway with ten traffic lanes (including exit lanes).[11][12]

Ventura Freeway currently carries the Los Angeles Metro express bus route 501 between Pasadena and North Hollywood. Portions of SR 134 are also being considered as part of a Bus Rapid Transit project.[13]

Exit list

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This exit list proceeds from east to west, since the majority of the freeway is the north-south US 101. Except where prefixed with a letter, postmiles were measured on the road as it was in 1964, based on the alignment that existed at the time, and do not necessarily reflect current mileage. R reflects a realignment in the route since then, M indicates a second realignment, L refers to an overlap due to a correction or change, and T indicates postmiles classified as temporary (for a full list of prefixes, see California postmile § Official postmile definitions).[14] Segments that remain unconstructed or have been relinquished to local control may be omitted. The numbers reset at county lines; the start and end postmiles in each county are given in the county column.

CountyLocationPostmile
[14][2][15]		Exit
[16][17]		DestinationsNotes
Los Angeles
LA R13.34-0.00
11.75-38.19		PasadenaR13.34—
 I-210 east (Foothill Freeway) – San Bernardino		Eastern terminus of SR 134 and Ventura Freeway; I-210 west exit 26A
25C[a]Fair Oaks Avenue, Marengo AvenueWestbound exit is part of exits 25A–B on I-210 west
13B

 I-210 west (Foothill Freeway) to SR 110 / Del Mar Boulevard / California Boulevard (SR 710) – San Fernando		I-210 east exits 25A–B
R12.9713AColorado Boulevard, Orange Grove BoulevardFormer SR 248
R12.3612San Rafael Avenue, Linda Vista AvenueLinda Vista Avenue was former SR 159 north
Los AngelesR11.4411Figueroa Street, Colorado BoulevardFigueroa Street was former US 66 Alt. west / SR 159 south; Colorado Boulevard was former US 66 Alt. east / SR 248 east; westbound exit and eastbound entrance for Colorado Boulevard only connected via 0.7 mile flyover ramps, formerly part of SR 134 west
Los Angeles–Glendale lineR8.969B SR 2 (Glendale Freeway)Signed as exit 9A eastbound; SR 2 north exits 17A-B, south exit 17B
GlendaleR8.819AHarvey DriveSigned as exit 9B eastbound
R7.878Glendale Avenue
R6.96–
R7.13		7BCentral Avenue, Brand Boulevard
R6.577APacific Avenue
R6.186San Fernando RoadFormer US 6 / US 99
Los AngelesR5.475
 I-5 north (Golden State Freeway) – Sacramento, Burbank Airport		Westbound exit and eastbound entrance; I-5 south exit 144; eastbound access is via exit 5A
R5.475B
 I-5 south (Golden State Freeway) – Los Angeles		Signed as exit 5 westbound; I-5 north exit 144A-B
4.815A

 Victory Boulevard to I-5 north		Eastbound exit and westbound entrance
3.814Forest Lawn Drive
Burbank2.903Bob Hope Drive, Buena Vista Street
2.112Hollywood WayNo eastbound exit
1.82Pass Avenue – BurbankEastbound exit only
Los Angeles0.861DCahuenga Boulevard – HollywoodSigned as exit 1 eastbound; no westbound entrance
0.511C

 Lankershim Boulevard to US 101 south – North Hollywood		Westbound exit and eastbound entrance
0.35Vineland AvenueEastbound exit and entrance only
0.001B
 SR 170 north (Hollywood Freeway) – Sacramento		West/northbound exit and east/southbound entrance; signed as exit 13 on US 101 north; SR 170 south exit 5B; east/south end of Hollywood Split
0.00
11.75[b]		—West end of SR 134
East/south end of US 101 overlap		Ventura Freeway west follows SR 134 exit 1A to US 101 north; SR 170 south exit 5B
—
 US 101 south (Hollywood Freeway) – Los Angeles		East/southbound exit and west/northbound entrance; SR 134 east follows US 101 south exit 13B; west/north end of Hollywood Split
See US 101 Exits 13A–83
Ventura–Santa Barbara
county line		​R43.62[b]—
 US 101 north (SR 1) – Santa Barbara, San Francisco		Western terminus of Ventura Freeway; continuation into Santa Barbara County
1.000 mi = 1.609 km; 1.000 km = 0.621 mi
  1. ^ Exit number follows I-210 rather than SR 134.
  2. ^ a b Indicates that the postmile represents the distance along US 101 rather than SR 134.

See also

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References

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  1. ^ a b c 2007 Named Freeways, Highways, Structures and Other Appurtenances in California (PDF). Caltrans. p. 78. Retrieved March 28, 2007.
  2. ^ a b California Department of Transportation (July 2007). "Log of Bridges on State Highways". Sacramento: California Department of Transportation.
  3. ^ Kevin Starr, Golden Dreams: California in an Age of Abundance, 1950-1963 (New York: Oxford University Press, 2009), p. 3.
  4. ^ "Article 2 of Chapter 2 of Division 1". California Streets and Highways Code. Sacramento: California Office of Legislative Counsel. Retrieved February 6, 2019.
  5. ^ Federal Highway Administration (March 25, 2015). National Highway System: Los Angeles, CA (PDF) (Map). Scale not given. Washington, DC: Federal Highway Administration. Retrieved September 29, 2017.
    Federal Highway Administration (March 25, 2015). National Highway System: Oxnard, CA (PDF) (Map). Scale not given. Washington, DC: Federal Highway Administration. Retrieved September 29, 2017.
  6. ^ Natzke, Stefan; Neathery, Mike & Adderly, Kevin (June 20, 2012). "What is the National Highway System?". National Highway System. Washington, DC: Federal Highway Administration. Retrieved July 1, 2012.
  7. ^ Ib. at 76
  8. ^ "California Highways (www.cahighways.org): Routes 97 through 104". www.cahighways.org. Retrieved November 7, 2012.
  9. ^ "Legislature passes resolution naming portion of 134 the Barack H. Obama Freeway". Pasadena Weekly. September 14, 2018. Retrieved December 22, 2018.
  10. ^ "Los Angeles-area freeway named for Barack Obama". ABC News. Associated Press. December 20, 2018. Retrieved December 21, 2018.
  11. ^ "Freeway wildlife corridor is feasible, study says". Visalia Times Delta. Associated Press. September 3, 2015. Retrieved May 26, 2021.
  12. ^ Guldimann, Suzanne (February 9, 2015). "Liberty Canyon wildlife crossing granted $1 million by SCC". Malibu Surfside News. Archived from the original on August 1, 2017. Retrieved September 12, 2015.{{cite news}}: CS1 maint: unfit URL (link)
  13. ^ Chilland, Elijah (July 17, 2019). "Eagle Rock split on Colorado Boulevard". Curbed Los Angeles. Retrieved December 20, 2019.
  14. ^ a b California Department of Transportation. "State Truck Route List". Sacramento: California Department of Transportation. Archived from the original (XLS file) on September 5, 2015. Retrieved June 30, 2015.
  15. ^ California Department of Transportation, All Traffic Volumes on CSHS, 2005 and 2006
  16. ^ California Department of Transportation, California Numbered Exit Uniform System, US-101 Northbound and US-101 Southbound. Retrieved February 2008.
  17. ^ California Department of Transportation, California Numbered Exit Uniform System, SR-134 Eastbound and SR-134 Westbound. Retrieved February 2008.
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