Interstate 15 Traffic Relief In Southwest Riverside County: Toll Lanes Planned

LAKE ELSINORE, CA — The city of Lake Elsinore, county, and state agencies are still moving forward with a project to ease traffic on a 15.8-mile stretch of Interstate 15.

The I-15 Express Lane Southern Extension proposes adding two tolled express lanes to northbound and southbound directions to accommodate the increasing traffic volumes in Southwest Riverside County.

The new lanes would be constructed in the freeway's median and extend from approximately El Cerrito Road in Corona to state Route 74/Central Avenue in Lake Elsinore.

The project would also add southbound I-15 auxiliary lanes between the Nichols Road entrance ramp and the Main Street exit ramp in Lake Elsinore. Other project features include widening up to 15 bridges, creating multiple express-lane entrance and exit points, and building noise barriers, retaining walls, drainage systems, and electronic toll-collection equipment and signs.

The extension is expected to cost upward of $700 million with a proposed start date of 2027. RCTC is exploring funding options for construction that may include a combination of federal, state, local, and toll sources.

On Tuesday, the Lake Elsinore City Council is expected to approve the execution of a Memorandum of Understanding with the Riverside County Transportation Commission for the project's construction. The MOU will detail the responsibilities of RCTC and the city regarding the massive project.

According to city documents, RCTC is responsible for providing all services to complete the project, obtaining all applicable environmental approvals and permits, providing all project funding, and allowing the city to inspect work within its jurisdiction.

RCTC would also carry out public outreach.

For its part, the city would be responsible for reviewing plans and processing permits in a timely manner for any work within its jurisdiction, and attending meetings formed for public information, traffic management, detours, and related construction work.

The RCTC, in partnership with Caltrans, has conducted engineering and environmental studies for the proposed project.

Once completed, the I-15 Express Lane Southern Extension would augment the existing I-15 Express Lanes Project that was completed in 2021. The latter project added two express lanes to I-15 in both directions between state Route 60 and Cajalco Road in Corona.