Largest Project In Temecula's History Promises I-15 Traffic Relief

TEMECULA, CA — A $138.7 million infrastructure project that aims to relieve traffic on Interstate 15 through Temecula was scheduled to break ground Tuesday.

The 11 a.m. groundbreaking kicks off the second phase of the I-15/French Valley Parkway Improvement project. Slated to take approximately 22 months to complete, the massive project includes adding two to three lanes on the northbound side of the freeway from Winchester Road to the Interstate 215 split. Additionally, a new flyover bridge will be constructed; the bridges at Santa Gertrudis Creek and Warm Springs Creek will be widened; and barriers and retaining walls will be built.

The project, the largest in Temecula's history, promises to slash the northbound freeway chokepoint at Winchester Road while making it safer for motorists near and at the northbound I-15/I-215 split.

Once the project is complete, drivers who enter northbound I-15 from Winchester Road will do so via dedicated lanes that are separated from freeway traffic by a concrete barrier. These motorists from Winchester Road will have the choice of either merging onto northbound I-215 or using a flyover bridge to get onto northbound I-15. The artist's rendering below shows how traffic is expected to flow (the red line represents the concrete barrier; the white lines show the flyover bridge to northbound I-15):

Project funding comes from a variety of sources, including developer fees, state and federal funding, taxpayer-approved Measures A and S, and the city's general fund.

I-15/French Valley Parkway Improvement project cost and funding: