SR-39 Reopening Project

SR-39 Reopening Project

State Route-39 (SR-39) is a two-lane highway connecting the San Gabriel Valley to the Angeles Crest Highway. Caltrans proposes to rehabilitate and reopen a 4.4-mile segment of SR-39 from post mile 40.0 to 44.4, within the Angeles National Forest, in Los Angeles County. The restored connection could be accessible to public highway traffic throughout the year, with seasonal closures during times of inclement weather. This segment of SR-39 has been closed to public highway traffic since 1978 as the roadway is regularly damaged by landslides, flooding, falling rocks, and forest fires. In February 2003, the closed highway was opened to emergency crews after a Caltrans study showed reopening it would not harm wetlands, air and water quality, natural vegetation, or threatened plants and animals. Maintenance activities have included the removal of rocks and debris, the cleaning of drainage culverts, and the erection of a dirt berm. With these past improvements, the roadway is passable, but only open to emergency service vehicles, and it is constricted as it approaches its northerly terminus. The proposed project would reconstruct the 4.4 mile stretch of roadway by installing roadway features to prevent future slides from damaging the roadway by considering five (5) build alternatives and one (1) no-build alternative. Caltrans will prepare an Environmental Impact Report (EIR)/Environmental Assessment (EA) for the project which will evaluate options for reopening the highway. Caltrans will be the lead agency for the proposed project under the California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA) and the National Environmental Protection Act (NEPA) as assigned by the Federal Highway Administration (FHWA).

Azusa, Baldwin Park, Bradbury, Citrus, Wrightwood, Covina, Duarte, Glendora, Monrovia

Los Angeles

Southern California

California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection (CAL FIRE), California Department of Parks and Recreation, California Department of Transportation, District 7 (DOT), California Department of Water Resources (DWR), California Fish and Game Commission (CDFGC), California Highway Patrol (CHP), California Natural Resources Agency, California Regional Water Quality Control Board, Los Angeles Region 4 (RWQCB), California Transportation Commission (CATC), Department of Toxic Substances Control, Office of Historic Preservation, San Gabriel and Lower Los Angeles Rivers and Mountains Conservancy (RMC), State Water Resources Control Board, Division of Drinking Water, California Native American Heritage Commission (NAHC), California Department of Fish and Wildlife, South Coast Region 5 (CDFW)

California Native American Heritage Commission (NAHC), California Department of Fish and Wildlife, South Coast Region 5 (CDFW)

Transportation:Highway/Freeway (Reopen a closed segment of SR-39 from PM 40.0 to 44.4)

Draft Environmental Document

Aesthetics, Air Quality, Biological Resources, Cultural Resources, Cumulative Effects, Economics/Jobs, Fiscal Impacts, Flood Plain/Flooding, Geology/Soils, Growth Inducement, Hazards & Hazardous Materials, Hydrology/Water Quality, Land Use/Planning, Mineral Resources, Noise, Public Services, Recreation, Solid Waste, Transportation, Tribal Cultural Resources, Utilities/Service Systems, Vegetation, Wetland/Riparian, Wildfire