A regular lane in each direction and extension of second carpool lane is part of improvement project between SR-73 and El Toro Road
ORANGE – La Paz Road under the I-5 freeway will close for two nights this Friday and Saturday in Mission Viejo and Laguna Hills, marking the first largescale demolition work as part of the I-5 Improvement Project between SR-73 and El Toro Road.
Full nightly closures are planned for La Paz Road between Cabot Road and Muirlands Boulevard from 10 p.m. to 8 a.m. on Friday and Saturday, Nov. 15 and 16.
Both the southbound and northbound loop on-ramps to the I-5 will also be closed during those work hours. All other on-ramps in the area are scheduled to remain open.
Some lane reductions are also planned on northbound I-5 between Oso and Alicia parkways to allow enough room for crews to safely complete the work.
The closures are necessary for the demolition of part of the I-5 bridge over La Paz Road and of the northbound loop on-ramp, redesigned to allow for the widening of the freeway.
Detours will be in place and drivers are encouraged to plan alternate routes in advance or avoid the area, if possible, during the closure.
Nighttime work will continue from 10 p.m. to 5 a.m. each night Monday, Nov. 18 through Thursday, Nov. 21, during which time La Paz Road will be reduced to one lane in each direction.
The freeway project, which began construction in June, will improve traffic flow on 6.5 miles of freeway between SR-73 and El Toro Road. The $581 million project, scheduled for completion in 2025, will add a regular lane in each direction, extend a second carpool lane between Alicia Parkway and El Toro Road, and improve interchanges and streets.
Approximately 360,000 cars travel through that stretch of freeway. The improvement project is largely funded by Measure M, Orange County’s half-cent sales tax for transportation improvements, also known as OC Go. Other funding is coming from a mix of state and federal funds.
Through the voter-approved Measure M, OCTA has completed and planned more than $1.5 billion in freeway, road and transit improvements in South Orange County.
As part of OCTA’s Long-Range Transportation Plan, these projects will accommodate projected growth during the next two decades and beyond.
For updated information on the project and to sign up for construction alerts, visit www.octa.net/southcounty.
