Photos progress southward, if you ignore the first 20 heading north. (They're on a dead-end. I had to.)


I'm at the southern stub end of the Ridge Route Alternate, Golden State Hwy. by Templin Hwy. (I-5 Exit 183). South of here, I-5 crosses Violin Summit on the former US 99 alignment. Ahead, there's clear sailing on this 4-lane roadway for miles. To the west, I can see the slope of Whitaker Peak looking up Canton Canyon.


At one point, this was all 4-lane road, and that point appears to have been not long ago based on the visible median stripes, although there has been no need for that since Pyramid Dam was constructed across the road in 1968, creating Pyramid Lake by 1970. The lake is named after the 1930s US 99 alignment that cut away the hillside into a triangle to bypass the twisty Ridge Route, creating a pyramid-looking mountain by what was deemed Pyramid Cut. From appearances, all traffic was shifted to the west side of the road instead of centering it so that a larger swath of road could be unmaintained.


Continuing north across Whitaker Summit, named for nearby Whitaker Peak, and down the long Threemile Grade that started out as a 3-lane road with a center "suicide lane" (passing in either direction) but likely became a second SB uphill lane (white stripes in the 6th photo). Unfortunately, the road is barred 2 miles shy of the dam, requiring one to park to complete the old road. I had an appointment to make for the non-alternate Ridge Route and did not have that luxury.


Looking ahead up Piru Gorge to what I'm missing.


Back south to the southerly stub until it runs underneath I-5. The "5.10" red marker lines up nicely with the distance to the northern closure.


Getting back on the highway from there at I-5 Exit 183, EB and WB mounted to the overpass.


Castaic Rd. SB at and onto Parker Rd. WB across I-5 in Castaic, then returning back across. Ridge Route Rd. is the northeast side of this intersection, and the old US 99 alignment flows from there into Castaic Rd. to the south via the dead-end Neely St.


How do you know this is the old road? It's called The Old Road. This heads south from Hasley Canyon Rd. under the gangly I-5/CA 14 interchange (featuring a separate Truck I-5 alignment) to Sierra Hwy. (old CA 14) at the northern border of Los Angeles. Continue south on San Fernando Rd. via the big link at bottom.


Past the south end of San Fernando Rd., this is Ave. 26 EB (old US 99 SB) and WB with a closeup over Arroyo Seco.


Continuing southeast, the first sign is at the entrance to CA 110 NB but points a half block ahead to Lacy St. It's not legible so the ambiguity doesn't matter. The second sign faces the ramp that splits off I-5 NB Exit 137B to CA 110 NB and comes to the base of Lacy St. It's a 3-phase signal with a leading left arrow for ramp traffic, but I don't know that a signal that faces all 4 directions of traffic would qualify as "3-way."


Daly St. SB and NB at North Broadway.


From downtown L.A., old US 99 gets to know I-10 for well over 100 miles as it heads out to Indio and Other Desert Cities, so it's no surprise Marengo St. SB comes to two interchanges in quick succession. The first is at State St. and the second is at Soto St.

WB at Soto St.


Skipping Garvey Ave., which has its own page linked below, old US 99 bears south onto Holt Ave. toward the east end of West Covina, which is more south of Covina than west. Horse riders get the new sign while the impoverished foot traffic makes do with a relic. I bet only the top button works, too.

Holt Ave. WB at I-10 Exit 38.


After East Covina Hills Rd. ends at Via Verde, turn left toward San Dimas and find... Covina Hill Rd. East of East Covina Hill Rd. Sure, whatever. What you see here is the cut-off stub of US 99, which followed now-residential Covina Hill Rd. through its current end, behind what are now expensive backyards along Via Fresa, and down into the modern I-10 alignment.


Coming back west from the dead end to the stub beginning.

Gorman
CR N2 (Ridge Route)
Ridge Route
San Fernando Rd./Blvd.
Garvey Ave.
Continue south on old US 99 to former Bus. I-10, Pomona-Ontario
Back north on old US 99 to Lebec

Onto I-5
Onto I-10
Los Angeles Co. (US 99) Non-Roads
Back to California Roads
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