California State Route 73

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California State Route 73 climbs into the San Joaquin Hills, as seen looking southward from University Hills in Irvine. In the foreground is the Bonita Canyon Drive exit.

State Route 73
Corona del Mar Freeway, San Joaquin Hills Toll Road Defined by S&HC § 373, maintained by Caltrans and TCA
Length:	18 mi[citation needed] (29 km)
Formed:	1996
South end:	I-5 in Mission Viejo
North end:	I-405 in Costa Mesa
State highways in California (list - pre-1964) County routes in California (list) < SR 72 SR 74 > History - Unconstructed - Deleted - Freeway - Scenic

State Route 73 runs from Interstate 405 to Interstate 5 through the San Joaquin Hills in Orange County. From its northern terminus, the first three miles of the highway are called the Corona del Mar Freeway; this section of highway opened in 1978. The next 12 miles of the 15 mile highway, made in November 1996, are a toll road operated by the San Joaquin Hills Transportation Corridor Agency named the San Joaquin Hills Transportation Corridor. State Route 73 runs approximately parallel to the Pacific Coast Highway and the San Diego Freeway. Its north terminus is Interstate 405 in Costa Mesa near Fairview Avenue. It then proceeds through the San Joaquin Hills and reaches its southern terminus of Interstate 5 in San Juan Capistrano. There are no HOV lanes currently, but the medians have reserved spots for them if the need arises in the future for their construction.

This route is part of the California Freeway and Expressway System^[1].

[edit] History

Most of State Route 73 is a limited-access toll highway designed to reduce congestion within Orange County on the Pacific Coast Highway (State Route 1), Interstate 5, and Interstate 405 by providing a direct route through the San Joaquin Hills.

Many commonly mistake all of State Route 73 as a toll road; however, this is a misconception. From its northbound terminus heading southbound, the first three miles of State Route 73 have no tolls and make up the entire Corona Del Mar Freeway. State Route 73's previous alignment had the freeway portion end at MacArthur Boulevard, and the SR 73 designation ran along MacArthur south to meet Route 1 in Corona del Mar. Under the current alignment, heading southbound, State Route 73 becomes a designated toll road immediately after the Jamboree/MacArthur ramp and remains so until its southern terminus at I-5. Though the next ramp heading southbound (Bison Avenue) is part of the toll road, it is toll-free, as is the first ramp heading northbound from the southern terminus (Greenfield Avenue).

Design and construction of the highway cost a total of $800 million dollars. The design and construction was overseen by the San Joaquin Hills Transportation Corridor Agencies, or SJHTCA, an agency formed in 1986 for the express purpose of designing the tollway. In the end, State Route 73 included 10 interchanges, 68 bridges, 725 000 square feet (67,000 m²) of retaining walls, and 32 million cubic yards (24,000,000 m³) of excavation at completion. Construction was divided into four different sections, each with its own management system and quality control. A joint venture led by Kiewit Pacific Co., a subsidiary of Kiewit Corporation, completed this project.

State Route 73's toll road was the first to be financed with tax-exempt bonds on a stand-alone basis including construction and environmental risk. Since its inception, FasTrak patrons riding the toll road could travel the entire distance without stopping or even slowing down as their tolls are collected electronically by overhead radios reading the transponder mounted on the vehicle. Travelers who drive the entire length of the 73 will only encounter one toll booth though; that is, in other words, unless you exit the freeway before reaching the 5 or the 405, depending on which direction you're going, you will not have to pay more than once. Of course, if you do exit, the tolls are prorated.

[edit] Additional landmarks

Route 73 passes through Crystal Cove State Park and provides easy access to University of California, Irvine through the Bison Ave. exit. The freeway also runs along the South boundary of Orange County John Wayne Airport (IATA Airport Code SNA).

[edit] Toll rates

The tolls on SR 73 begin only after the Bison Ave. exit in the Southward direction, and in the northward direction there is a toll in effect from Interstate 5 (the terminus) up until Bison Ave. Route 73 also takes advantage of the FasTrak system, offering commuters savings by providing a discounted toll at each exit. The following table lists the tolls at each of the tolled exits, both with and without FasTrak.

Effective July 2, 2007 ^[2]

[edit] Exit list

Note: Except where prefixed with a letter, postmiles were measured in 1964, based on the alignment as it existed at that time, and do not necessarily reflect current mileage.

The entire route is in Orange County.

Location	Postmile [3][4][5]	#[6]	Destinations	Notes
San Juan Capistrano	10.00		I-5 south (San Diego Freeway)	Southbound exit and northbound entrance
Laguna Niguel	11.76	2	Greenfield Drive
Aliso Viejo	12.91	3	Moulton Parkway	Southbound exit and northbound entrance
	13.40	3	La Paz Road
	14.39	4	Aliso Creek Road
	15.25	5	Pacific Park Drive, Glenwood Drive	Southbound exit and northbound entrance
	16.25	6	El Toro Road (CR S18)
	16.75	6	SR 133 (Laguna Canyon Road)
	18.70	Catalina View toll plaza
Irvine	21.43	11	Newport Coast Drive
	22.45	12	Bonita Canyon Drive
	North end of toll road
	23.46	13	Bison Avenue
Newport Beach	23.82	14A	MacArthur Boulevard – Newport Beach	Southbound exit and northbound entrance; former SR 73 south
	23.82	14	MacArthur Boulevard – John Wayne Airport	Northbound exit and southbound entrance
	24.36	14B	University Drive	Southbound exit and northbound entrance
	R24.78	15	Jamboree Road	No northbound exit
	R25.45	15	Birch Street	Northbound exit and southbound entrance
	R25.58	16	Campus Drive, Irvine Avenue	Southbound exit and northbound entrance
Costa Mesa	R26.58	17A	SR 55 north (Costa Mesa Freeway)	Northbound exit and southbound entrance
	R26.58	17B	SR 55 south (Costa Mesa Freeway)	Signed as exit 17A southbound
	R27.28	17C	Bear Street	Signed as exit 17B southbound
		18B	Fairview Road	Northbound exit and southbound entrance
			Harbor Boulevard	Northbound exit and southbound entrance
	R27.81	18A	I-405 north (San Diego Freeway)	Northbound exit and southbound entrance

[edit] References

[edit] External links

• Transportation Corridor Agencies
• Project Description at Kiewit