Arroyo Seco Parkway

The Arroyo Seco Parkway, also known as the Pasadena Freeway, is one of the oldest freeways in the United States. It connects Los Angeles with Pasadena alongside the Arroyo Seco seasonal river. Mostly opened in 1940, it shows the change between early parkways and later freeways. When it was built, it met modern standards, but today it is seen as narrow and outdated.

In 1953, the south end was extended to the Four Level Interchange in downtown Los Angeles, linking it to the rest of the freeway system. The road looks much like it did when it first opened, though plants in its median have been replaced with steel guard rails and concrete barriers. It is now State Route 110 instead of historic U.S. Route 66.

Between 1954 and 2010, it was called the Pasadena Freeway. In 2010, the California Department of Transportation restored its original name as part of plans to improve its beauty and safety. All of its original bridges are still there, including four built before the 1930s. The road has more crashes than other freeways, mainly because its design lacks acceleration and deceleration lanes.

The Arroyo Seco Parkway is a State Scenic Highway, a National Historic Civil Engineering Landmark, and a National Scenic Byway. It was listed in the National Register of Historic Places in 2011.

Route description

The Arroyo Seco Parkway, also called the Pasadena Freeway, is one of the oldest freeways in the United States. It connects Los Angeles with Pasadena and runs alongside the Arroyo Seco seasonal river. It has six lanes and is part of State Route 110. It starts at the Four Level Interchange, a special junction that links several major roads.

As the parkway continues, it passes through tunnels and over bridges, linking many streets and roads. It goes near important places like Dodger Stadium and crosses the Los Angeles River. The road follows the Arroyo Seco and has many exits and entrances for different streets.

In the final part of the parkway, drivers pass signs for the "City of South Pasadena." The road curves around hills and ends near Colorado Boulevard, continuing as a regular street up to Memorial Park.

Route usage

In 2016, the Arroyo Seco Parkway was used by many cars each day. At one spot called Orange Grove Blvd, about 78,000 cars passed by. At Ave 64, it was about 100,000 cars, and at Ave 43, around 123,000 cars traveled along the parkway.

History

Planning

The Arroyo Seco is a dry creek that runs from the San Gabriel Mountains through Pasadena into the Los Angeles River near downtown Los Angeles. Long ago, it was a quicker way for wagons to travel between the two cities.

Plans for a road through the Arroyo Seco date back to 1895. Over the years, ideas ranged from a scenic parkway to a bike path. An early bike path was built but failed because bicycles were no longer popular and it didn’t make money.

By the 1930s, most plans focused on building a road for cars, though there was debate about where it should go and whether it should wind through parks or be a straight highway. Final plans called for the road to connect Los Angeles and Pasadena, skipping some parts of downtown Pasadena.

Construction

To connect the new parkway to Los Angeles, the city improved North Figueroa Street with tunnels and bridges. Construction began in 1938. The first piece opened in December 1938, and the whole parkway was finished by early 1941. It was built cheaply because the land was easy to work with.

The parkway was one of the first freeways in California and the United States, designed with special lanes and curves to help cars travel safely. It became part of a major highway system that grew quickly in the following years.

Post-construction

The Arroyo Seco Parkway stayed mostly the same since it opened, though some changes were made over time. It was named a historic parkway in 1993 and received several awards for its importance in highway history. Even today, it remains a key route between Los Angeles and Pasadena, though it has some design issues that make driving tricky for many people.

Exit list

Mileage is measured from Route 110's southern terminus in San Pedro. The entire route is in Los Angeles County.