Skip to main content

Paper Highways; unbuilt California State Route 100 in Santa Cruz

By


This edition of Paper Highways examines the unbuilt California State Route 100 in Santa Cruz.



The History of Unbuilt California State Route 100

The route that became CA 100 was added to the State Inventory in 1959 as part of the Freeway & Expressway System as Legislative Route 287.  According to CAhighways.org the initial definition of LRN 287 had it begin at LRN 5 (CA 17) and was defined over the below alignment to LRN 56 (CA 1) through downtown Santa Cruz.

-  Ocean Street
-  2nd Street
-  Chestnut Street

For context the above alignment would required tearing down a large part of the densely populated Santa Cruz.  A modern Google imagine immediately reveals how crazy an alignment following Ocean Street, 2nd Street, and Chestnut Street would have been.


LRN 287 first appears on the 1960 Division of Highways State Map.



In 1961 the definition of LRN 287 was generalized to; from LRN 5 via the beach area in Santa Cruz to LRN 56 west of the San Lorenzo River.  This new more generalized route description of LRN 287 can be first seen on the 1962 Division of Highways State Map.



During the 1964 State Highway Renumbering LRN 287 became CA 100.  The 1964 Division of Highways Map shows a similar route definition to what LRN 287 had in 1961.



CA 100 never had a formal route adoption but somehow it ended up being rescinded anyways in 1975 according to CAhighways.  One of the proposals for a freeway bypass of downtown Santa Cruz was building a parallel route to CA 1 north of Mission Street but it was highly contended locally.  Following U.C. Santa Cruz being established in 1965 some of the proposals for CA 100 had the corridor routed north of downtown and by the School Campus in the foothills of the Santa Cruz Mountains.

Despite the numerous proposals for CA 100 the route has never been Legislatively deleted.  CA 100 still appears on the 2005 Caltrans State Map with the same route definition it had in 1964.



Assuming CA 100 was constructed to the 1964 definition it would likely split from the CA 1 freeway/CA 17 expressway junction south via the corridor of Ocean Street.  The theoretical split in CA 100 would likely occur at a shared interchange with CA 17 as seen below from current CA 1.


The reverse view from CA 1 south approaching the junction of CA 17.  The split for CA 100 would likely be a right hand exit had it been constructed.


Labels:

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

2018 Mojave Road Trip Part 2; The deadly desert highway (California State Route 127 and Nevada State Route 373)

By
After leaving Barstow via Old Highway 58 my next destination was in Death Valley.  To access Death Valley from rural San Bernardino County required a trek on north on Interstate 15 to California State Route 127 which becomes Nevada State Route 373 at the state line. Along I-15 I encountered the road sign oddity that is Zzyzx Road about eight miles south of Baker.   Zzyzx Road is a four mile road that used to go to the Zzyzx Mineral Springs and Health Spa.   The spa was founded in the 1940s and the owner made up the name "Zzyzx" to claim it was the last word in the English Language.  The spa has been shut down since the 1970s and is now part of a Desert Studies Center for California State University. The southern terminus of CA 127 in Baker is located at I-15 exit 246.  CA 127 is a 91 mile north/south highway which runs to the Nevada State Line in Inyo County.  CA 127 is called Death Valley Road from I-15 northward.  South of CA 127 ...
4 comments
Read more

Finding the Pre-Emption Road of New York State

By
  The Pre-Emption Road (or rather a series of roads named Pre-Emption Road) follows a survey line called the Pre-Emption Line, drawn in the early days of the United States. The story begins with Massachusetts and New York having competing land claims to modern day Western New York State that have their roots in colonial charters granted by the British. After the Revolutionary War ended, this land became the frontier of the nation and its settlement became a priority for the new American government. During this era, there were a lot of competing land claims that needed to be settled. It was no different with the land claims between New York State and Massachusetts. On November 30, 1786, Massachusetts and New York sent representatives to Hartford, Connecticut to resolve their competing land claims. In less than three weeks, the representatives had reached a compromise. Massachusetts would receive pre-emption rights, meaning the right to sell the land after the Indian title ...
Post a Comment
Read more

What's In a Name?: When the Roads Really Do Tell a Story

By
  Our tagline on the Gribblenation blog is "because every road tells a story". Some roads tell different stories than others. Along our travels, we may see historic markers that tell us a little story about the roads we travel or the places we pass by. Some historic markers are more general, as to telling us who lived where or what old trail traversed between two towns. During my travels across New York State and other states or provinces, I pass by many historic markers, some with interesting or amusing references to roads. I wanted to highlight a few of the markers I've seen along my travels around the Empire State and help tell their stories. Those stories may be as specific as explaining the tales of a tree that was used to help measure a distance of eight miles from Bath to Avoca in Steuben County, as referenced on the Eight Mile Tree historical marker above. They may also help point the way along historical roads first used centuries ago, or may help tell a local l...
Post a Comment
Read more