Imperial Highway
 | This articleneeds additional citations forverification.(May 2018) |
 Imperial Highway street sign in Los Angeles | |
| Part of | |
|---|---|
| Maintained by | Local jurisdictions, Caltrans (for the portion betweenSR 39andSR 91) |
| Length | 105 mi (169 km) |
| Location | California |
| Nearest metro station |  :
|
| Southeastern end |  SR 98nearOcotillo |
| Major junctions |
|
| Northwestern end | Vista Del Mar inPlaya Del Rey |
| Construction | |
| Inauguration | 1931 |
TheImperial Highwayis a west-east thoroughfare in the counties ofLos Angeles,Orange,Riverside,San Diego,andImperialin the U.S. state ofCalifornia.The main portion of the existing route begins at Vista Del Mar in Los Angeles near theLos Angeles International Airportand ends at theAnaheim–Orangecity line at Via Escola where it becomes Cannon Street. Historically, the Imperial Highway extended from Vista Del Mar toCalexico,where a portion of the highway still exists. The original route was replaced with other highways, leading the older portions of the Imperial Highway to fall out of use.[1]
Route
[edit]The total length of theGreater Los Angelesportion of the Imperial Highway is approximately 41 miles (66 km), of which 14 miles (23 km) run through Orange County and 27 miles (43 km) through Los Angeles County.
Between SR 91 and SR 39, Imperial Highway is signed asState Route 90.Ade factofreeway portion of the route inYorba Lindais also known as theRichard M. Nixon Freeway.
The portion in Los Angeles County betweenLakewood Boulevardand Valley View Avenue is located about one mile north of, and runs parallel to,Rosecrans Avenue.
Cities
[edit]Starting from Cannon Street & Via Escola inOrange,going east to west Cannon Street becomes Imperial Highway upon enteringAnaheim.The highway then passes through the cities and communities ofAnaheim Hills,Yorba Linda,Placentia,Brea,Fullerton,La Habra,La Mirada,Santa Fe Springs(some sections in La Mirada and Santa Fe Springs are next to unincorporated LA County),Norwalk,Downey,South Gate,Lynwood,Los Angeles(Watts,andSouth LA– a portion after South LA is in unincorporated LA County),Inglewood,Hawthorne,El Segundo(southside of street only), andWestchester(part of Los Angeles on the northside). Imperial Highway ends atDockweiler Beachon Vista Del Mar near Playa Del Rey, just pastLAX.
Freeways
[edit]Along its route, Imperial Highway crosses over or under these freeways from west to east:
- Interstate 105
- Interstate 405
- Interstate 110
- Interstate 710
- Interstate 605
- Interstate 5
- California State Route 57
- California State Route 91
- Interstate 8
Transportation
[edit]Metro Locallines 120 and formerly 625 run via Imperial Highway, as well asNorwalk Transitline 4; Metro line 625 ran between Pershing Drive andLa Cienega Boulevard.Metro line 120 runs between Aviation Boulevard andNorwalk Station,and Norwalk line 4 between Norwalk Station and Beach Boulevard. Imperial intersects with theMetro AandC Linesat Wilmington Avenue inWillowbrookat theWillowbrook/Rosa Parks station.There is also another C LinestationatAviation Boulevard.
Western terminus coordinates (El Segundo):33°55′50.91″N118°26′5.42″W/ 33.9308083°N 118.4348389°W
Eastern terminus coordinates (Anaheim):33°50′7.76″N117°47′43.32″W/ 33.8354889°N 117.7953667°W
History
[edit]Imperial Highway was built in large part because of lobbying from the Imperial Highway Association, founded in 1929. The Imperial Highway Association lobbied city and county governments to build Imperial Highway, gaining cities along the way until the highway finished construction in 1961.[2]
Imperial Highway was initially conceived as a commercial route connectingImperial Countyto Los Angeles County.[3][2]A segment remains today in Imperial County which connects Interstate 8 nearOcotillo.Another segment adjacent to Lake Elsinore (Riverside County) was once indicated on 1960s vicinity maps by H.M. Gousha (Gousha), publisher of street maps.[citation needed]
Other uses
[edit]There are other Imperial Highways in the United States, including one inSan Diego(better known as Imperial Avenue) and in theDetroitsuburbs ofRedford Township, MichiganandWestland, Michigan.Despite the name, Westland's version runs a mere three blocks, north from Bock Street, then northeast from Hambleton Street, across John Hauk Road and stopping at Pardo Street. (It used to continue toFord Road,but this section has been a hardware store parking lot since the 1970s.)[citation needed]
References
[edit]- ^California Highways
- ^abBrigandi, Phil (2011)."The Imperial Highway".History Articles.Orange County Historical Society. Archived fromthe originalon April 22, 2017.RetrievedDecember 5,2017.
- ^Gnerre, Sam (March 29, 2021)."South Bay History: Imperial Highway once figured as part of a superhighway plan".Daily Breeze.RetrievedMarch 30,2021.
Further reading
[edit]- Brigandi, Phil (Spring 2010). "From the Desert to the Sea: The Story of the Imperial Highway".The Riverside County Chronicles(2). Riverside County Historical Commission; Riverside County Regional Park and Open-Space District: 29–34.ISBN978-1547004010.
External links
[edit]
Media related toImperial Highwayat Wikimedia Commons
- Streets in Orange County, California
- Streets in Los Angeles County, California
- Streets in Los Angeles
- Southern California freeways
- Anaheim, California
- Yorba Linda, California
- Transportation in Fullerton, California
- La Habra, California
- La Mirada, California
- Santa Fe Springs, California
- Norwalk, California
- Downey, California
- Paramount, California
- South Gate, California
- Lynwood, California
- Watts, Los Angeles
- South Los Angeles
- Inglewood, California
- Hawthorne, California
- El Segundo, California
- Named highways in California