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News of the Arroyo
Title: | LA Freeway Gets New Old Name |
Subtitle: | |
Date: | 2010-06-25 |
Author: | Staff - AP, KNBC |
Publication: | KNBC TV News |
Content: |  An entrance sign at the beginning of the Arroyo Seco Parkway in Pasadena at Wallis Street, looking southeast.How's this for a freeway transition: The Pasadena Freeway, which used to be called the Arroyo Seco Parkway, will now be called the Arroyo Seco Parkway once again. The re-re-naming of a portion of the 110 Freeway will come with new lighting, a better center divider and low walls on the shoulders. The Department of Transportation decided those changes warranted a return to the road's roots. California highway officials have been installing new connector road signs reading "Pkwy" for weeks. The LA Times reported that the signs will cost about $650,000. The Pasadena Freeway was called the Arroyo Seco Parkway when the first 6-mile section opened in 1940. The parkway is located between the four-level interchange in downtown and Glenarm Street in Pasadena. At the time of its construction in 1938, it was a marvel of engineering. Then-Gov. Culbert Olson declared the much-needed transportation link the "first freeway in the West," according to the Historic American Engineering Record (HAER). The HAER calls the scenic Pasadena-LA route "a prominent example of the evolution from recreational parkways to more utilitarian high-speed freeways." Check out HAER's photo gallery for some vintage images of the area and the 1938 road construction project. The road improvements are part of a $17 million rehabilitation project for the eight-mile highway. It's expected to be completed by next spring. Follow NBCLA for the latest LA news, events and entertainment: Twitter: @NBCLA // Facebook: NBCLA Copyright Associated Press / NBC Los Angeles First Published: Jun 25, 2010 1:15 PM PDT |