.svg) Interstate 605 | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| San Gabriel River Freeway | ||||
 I-605 highlighted in red | ||||
| Route information | ||||
| Auxiliary route ofI-5 | ||||
| Maintained byCaltrans | ||||
| Length | 27.40 mi[1] (44.10 km) | |||
| History | 1940s as a state highway, 1964 as a number[2] | |||
| NHS | Entire route | |||
| Major junctions | ||||
| South end |   I-405 /SR 22 inSeal Beach | |||
| Major intersections | ||||
| North end | Huntington Drive inDuarte | |||
| Location | ||||
| Country | United States | |||
| State | California | |||
| Counties | Orange,Los Angeles | |||
| Highway system | ||||
| ||||
Interstate 605 (abbreviatedI-605, officially known as theSan Gabriel River Freeway and locally referred to asThe 605) is a 27-mile-long (43 km) major north–southauxiliary Interstate Highway in theGreater Los Angeles urban area ofSouthern California. It runs fromI-405 andState Route 22 (SR 22) inSeal Beach inOrange County toI-210 just south of theIrwindale–Duarte border inLos Angeles County. The San Gabriel River Freeway closely parallels theSan Gabriel River for most of its alignment, hence its name, which is one of the fewSouthern California freeways not named after a city along its route.
Aside from changes to the interchange with I-105 (which did not open until the early 1990s), and the addition of an HOV lane between I-405 and I-10, I-605 is one of the only remaining freeways that kept its original alignment throughout its run through Los Angeles County since it first opened.
The entirety of I-605 is defined in the state highway system asRoute 605. It is defined as such in theCalifornia Streets and Highways Code's section 619:[3]
Route 605 is from:
(a)Route 1 nearSeal Beach toRoute 405.
(b) Route 405 toRoute 210 nearDuarte.Route 605 shall be known and designated as the “San Gabriel River Freeway.”
The interchange with I-405 and SR 22 was built to accommodate an unconstructed future extension south to SR 1 as outlined in subdivision (a). The distance is traversable via nearby Seal Beach Boulevard, but Caltrans has no intention to adopt the road as part of Route 605.
The southern terminus of I-605 is at theSan Diego (I-405) and Garden Grove (SR 22) Freeways inSeal Beach. From there, it runs roughly north through theGateway Cities of theLos Angeles Basin. It then shifts north-northeast, crossing theWhittier Narrows and across theSan Gabriel Valley. I-605 then ends at its junction with theFoothill Freeway, (I-210) just south of theIrwindale–Duarte border. Ramps from I-605 then extend north toHuntington Drive in Duarte.
I-605 follows most of the length of theSan Gabriel River from the San Diego Freeway in Seal Beach to theSanta Fe Dam. Typically dry riverbed and flood basins are visible from many portions of the route, especially near the northern terminus.
In the mid-2000s, aHOV lane was added for motorists with two or more people to use between I-405 and I-10. The HOV lane ends at I-10 and there are no plans to extend it to I-210 at this time. With the addition of the HOV lane, the left shoulder was eliminated to avoid massive costs to widen the freeway. The highway also suffers from traffic jams regularly, especially the junction withI-5 (theSanta Ana Freeway). Newer signs with exit numbers replaced the older signs between the Orange County line and I-10 in 2016, with the completion of the I-605 and I-10 junction improvement. I-605 is one of the only Southern California freeways without destinations (control cities) such as "Seal Beach" or "Irwindale" since its opening. Rather, cardinal directions ("NORTH" or "SOUTH"), and a simple "THRU TRAFFIC" designation in place of control cities, are used on signs along I-605 itself.
I-605 is part of theCalifornia Freeway and Expressway System,[4] and is part of theNational Highway System,[5] a network of highways that are considered essential to the country's economy, defense, and mobility by theFederal Highway Administration.[6] I-605 from I-405 to I-10 is known as the San Gabriel River Freeway, as named by Senate Bill 99, Chapter 1101 in 1967.[7]
In 1957, the number for this route was proposed as I-13, as it is positioned approximately midway between I-5 and I-15 (although it intersects the former). That number was rejected, as was the second proposed number, I-102. Finally, the designation I-605 was accepted in 1958.[8][unreliable source?]
I-605 began construction in 1963 and the first section was opened in 1964 fromI-405 toSR 60. The newest section (extension toI-210) was opened in 1971 was originally signed as SR 243. There are plans to extend it toSR 1 further south in Orange County as SR 605, but strong community opposition means that it is unlikely that the alignment will ever be built.[8]
In 2020, there was a proposal to widen I-605, which would have added four new lanes to 12 mi (19 km) of I-605 betweenNorwalk andEl Monte, California. This proposal was rejected due to strong community opposition, in particular due to the fact that it would have led to the destruction of houses inDowney, California.[9]
| County | Location | mi[10][11] | km | Exit[10] | Destinations | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Orange | Seal Beach | 0.00 | 0.00 | 1A |  SR 22 west (7th Street) –Long Beach | Southern terminus; SR 22 east exit 2; I-405 north exit 24; I-405 south/SR 22 east is formerSR 7 south |
| Seal Beach–Los Alamitos line | 0.41 | 0.66 | 1B |   I-405 south (San Diego Freeway) /SR 22 east (Garden Grove Freeway) –Garden Grove | ||
| — |   405 Express Lanes south toSR 22 east | |||||
| Orange–Los Angeles county line | Seal Beach–Los Alamitos– Long Beach tripoint | 1C |  I-405 north (San Diego Freeway) –Santa Monica | Signed as exit 1A northbound; formerSR 7 north; I-405 south exit 24A | ||
| Orange | Los Alamitos | 1.41 | 2.27 | 1D | Katella Avenue / Willow Street | Signed as exit 1B northbound; southbound access to Willow Street is via exit 2A |
| Coyote Creek | 1.60 | 2.57 | Bridge | |||
| Los Angeles | Long Beach | 1.69 | 2.72 | 2A | Willow Street | Southbound exit only |
| 1.93 | 3.11 | 2B | Spring Street / Cerritos Avenue | Southbound exit and northbound entrance | ||
| Long Beach–Lakewood line | 3.38 | 5.44 | 3 | Carson Street / Lincoln Avenue | FormerUS 91 andSR 18 | |
| Lakewood–Cerritos line | 4.51 | 7.26 | 5A | Del Amo Boulevard | ||
| Cerritos | 5.39 | 8.67 | 5B | South Street | ||
| 6.69 | 10.77 | 7A |  SR 91 (Artesia Freeway) | SR 91 east exit 17, west exit 17B | ||
| Cerritos–Norwalk line | 7.45 | 11.99 | 7B | Alondra Boulevard | ||
| Norwalk | 8.50 | 13.68 | 9A | Rosecrans Avenue | ||
| 9.29 | 14.95 | 9B |   I-105 west (Century Freeway) /Imperial Highway | Signed as exits 9B (I-105) and 9C (Imperial Highway) northbound; I-105 east exits 18A-B; Imperial Highway is formerSR 90. | ||
| 9.53 | 15.34 | 10 | Firestone Boulevard | FormerSR 42 | ||
| Downey | 11.25 | 18.11 | 11 | Florence Avenue | ||
| Downey–Santa Fe Springs line | 11.25 | 18.11 | 11 |  I-5 (Santa Ana Freeway) –Los Angeles,Santa Ana | FormerUS 101 Byp. south; I-5 exit 124 | |
| Santa Fe Springs | 11.89 | 19.14 | 12 | Telegraph Road | FormerUS 101 Byp. north; formerSR 26 | |
| West Whittier-Los Nietos | 13.18 | 21.21 | 13 | Slauson Avenue | ||
| 13.69 | 22.03 | 14 | Washington Boulevard | Signed as exits 14A (west) and 14B (east) southbound | ||
| West Whittier-Los Nietos–Whittier line | 15.21 | 24.48 | 15 | Whittier Boulevard (SR 72) | FormerUS 101 | |
| Whittier–Pico Rivera line | 16.05 | 25.83 | 16 | Beverly Boulevard | Southbound access to Beverly Boulevard west is via exit 17 | |
| Pico Rivera–Industry line | 17.21 | 27.70 | 17 | Rose Hills Road | ||
| Industry | 18.29 | 29.43 | 18 | Peck Road | ||
| Industry | 19.05 | 30.66 | 19 |  SR 60 (Pomona Freeway) –Los Angeles,Pomona | SR 60 exit 12 | |
| Avocado Heights–Industry line | 21.03 | 33.84 | 21 | Valley Boulevard | FormerUS 60 andSR 212 | |
| Baldwin Park | 21.83 | 35.13 | 22 |  I-10 (San Bernardino Freeway) –Los Angeles,San Bernardino | FormerUS 99 /US 70 /US 60; I-10 east exits 31A-B, west exit 31A | |
| Baldwin Park–Irwindale line | 22.71 | 36.55 | 23 | Ramona Boulevard –Baldwin Park,El Monte | FormerUS 99 | |
| Irwindale | 23.79 | 38.29 | 24 | Lower Azusa Road / Los Angeles Street | ||
| 25.16 | 40.49 | 25 | Live Oak Avenue | Northbound exit and southbound entrance | ||
| 26.60 | 42.81 | 26 | Arrow Highway | Southbound exit and northbound entrance | ||
| 27.40 | 44.10 | 27A |   I-210 east (Foothill Freeway) –San Bernardino | I-210 exits 36A-B (exit 36B signed as Mount Olive Drive) | ||
| 27.40 | 44.10 | 27B | I-210 west (Foothill Freeway) –Pasadena | |||
| Irwindale–Duarte line | 27.54 | 44.32 | 27C | Huntington Drive (Historic US 66) –Duarte | Northern terminus;at-grade intersection; formerUS 66 | |
| | Mount Olive Drive | Continuation beyond Huntington Drive | ||||
| 1.000 mi = 1.609 km; 1.000 km = 0.621 mi | ||||||
