California State Route 240 was a short-lived State Highway designation applied during 1964 to the planned San Gabriel River Freeway south of California State Route 22 towards Seal Beach. A small portion of California State Route 240 was opened to traffic during 1966 in the form of connecting ramps between the San Gabriel River Freeway and California State Route 22. California State Route 240 was folded into the larger definition of Route 605 when the chargeable Interstate 605 corridor was shifted during 1968.
Part 1; the history of California State Route 240
The origins of California State Route 240 are tied to the development of the San Gabriel River Freeway and Legislative Route Number 170 (LRN 170). The original definition of LRN 170 was as follows:
"LRN 179 near Seal Springs via Santa Fe Springs to LRN 26 near West Covina."
The August 1934 California Highways & Public Works announced the initial run of Sign State Routes. California State Route 35 was assigned completely concurrent with LRN 170 between US Route 99-60-70/LRN 26 in West Covina and California State Route 22/LRN 179 near Seal Beach.
The November/December 1956 California Highways & Public Works noted the entire 23-mile corridor of the San Gabriel River Freeway/LRN 170 was adopted by the California Highway Commission on December 15, 1954.
The corridor of LRN 170 was approved to become a chargeable Interstate on September 15, 1955. On June 29, 1956, the Federal Highway Aid Act of 1956 was signed into law on the Federal Level. The Federal Highway Aid Act of 1956 was the genesis point of the Interstate Highway System.
1957 Legislative Chapter 36 extended the definition of LRN 170 south to US Route 101A/LRN 60 near Seal Beach. The segment of LRN 170 south of California State Route 22/LRN 179 was not included in the chargeable Interstate corridor of the San Gabriel River Freeway. The extended definition of LRN 170 appears on the 1958 Division of Highways Map with no determined routing south of California State Route 22/LRN 179.
The chargeable corridor of LRN 170 and the San Gabriel River Freeway was assigned Interstate 605 during the late 1950s. During the 1964 State Highway Renumbering the original California State Route 35 was decommissioned and repurposed over what was California State Route 5 in the Santa Cruz Mountains. The entirety of LRN 170 and the San Gabriel River Freeway was broken up into three designations. Chargeable Interstate 605 was defined as being aligned from "Route 405 to Route 10 near the San Gabriel River." The planned San Gabriel River Freeway south of Interstate 405 to California State Route 1 was reassigned as California State Route 240. The planned San Gabriel River Freeway north of Interstate 10 to Interstate 210 and the Foothill Freeway was assigned as California State Route 243. Interstate 605, California State Route 240 and California State Route 243 all appear on the 1964 Division of Highways Map. The previous surface route of the original California State Route 35 is shown be temporarily designated as LRN 605.
The November/December 1964 California Highways & Public Works noted Interstate 605 and the San Gabriel River Freeway was extended to Interstate 10 during the past October. Construction of the California State Route 240 portion of the San Gabriel River Freeway to California State Route 22 is stated to be partially financed in the next budget.
The November/December 1965 California Highways & Public Works noted 4.7-mile portion the Interstate 605 segment of the San Gabriel River Freeway south of Whittier Boulevard during the previous September. The California State Route 240 segment of San Gabriel River Freeway to California State Route 22 is noted to have a planned completion during Fall 1966.
The 1967 Division of Highways Map displays Interstate 605 as being complete between Interstate 5 and Interstate 405. The California State Route 240 stub of the San Gabriel River Freeway to California State Route 22 is also shown completed. The remaining portion of the original California State Route 35 is shown to be relinquished from the State Highway System.
1967 Senate Bill 99, Chapter 1101 codified the name of Interstate 605 between Interstate 405 and Interstate 10 as the San Gabriel River Freeway.
1968 Legislative Chapter 282 reclassified the California State Route 240 and California State Route 243 portions of the planned San Gabriel River Freeway as Route 605. During December 1968 the Federal Highway Administration added the San Gabriel River Freeway north of Interstate 10 as chargeable Interstate. The addition of Interstate 605 as being chargeable north of Interstate 10 was made due to the provisions of the 1968 Federal Highway Aid Act.
The two unbuilt segments of the San Gabriel River Freeway appear as Route 605 as on the 1969 Division of Highways Map. The San Gabriel River Freeway never would be constructed south of California State Route 22 to Seal Beach.
During 2020 Dan Murphy of the Roadwaywiz Youtube channel featured real-time drives on Interstate 605. In the video below the transition of what would have been originally California State Route 240 can be seen as Interstate 605 southbound approaches Exit 1A which accesses westbound California State Route 22. The transition ramp connecting Interstate 605 southbound to westbound California State Route 22 was constructed as California State Route 240.
Below the California State Route 22 westbound can be seen approaching the transition ramp from southbound Interstate 605. This structure was originally constructed as California State Route 240.
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