What is up with the 805??? (San Diego, Anaheim: home, construction, upkeep)

[cityx]

I moved to San Diego back in September. I work in Mira Mesa and live in Hillcrest so my route is 163 to the 805 five days a week. Why is the 805 such a perpetually clogged artery during the week? Reminds me of the 57 freeway in Anaheim.
Any alternative routes from Mira Mesa (Mira Mesa Blvd. and Sorrento Valley Road) toward downtown? The mileage is only 14 miles each way but it can take me an hour to get home sometimes!
Thanks...

[shmoov_groovzsd]

Construction is part of it at the 805 / Mira Mesa bl junction near Qualcomm.The 805, 56, and 5 all meet up too

[earlyretirement]

Yeah, I was just going to say they are doing construction on the 805 but I'd assume you knew that if you work in the area. I stay way clear of 805 near rush hour so I don't know how bad it gets.

What time are you headed out of the office? When I head over to your neck of the woods I just take I-15 and 163 but I realize that Mira Mesa Blvd. can be a nightmare depending where you are coming from and what time of day it is and it's a hassle to drive down Mira Mesa Blvd at rush hour. But I-15 / 163 is really great when I head there but granted I don't have to drive down Mira Mesa. Blvd.

[shmoov_groovzsd]

An alternative would be getting on the 15 from the Carroll Canyon Rd exit. From there just hop on 163.But it sounds like you are closer to the 805 side? I can't think of many alternatives from that side. Maybe take Camino Ruiz south to Miramar rd then west on Miramar to the 15.SD is more about following the path of least resistance vs actual physical distance

[Pedro2000]

Anywhere near where The 805 and 5 meetup , with or without construction, have become one of those roads you try to avoid. From like 4pm till 7pm it's a nightmare on most weekdays. If you don't have to drive that route, you avoid it.
I have driven from Del Mar Heights to the UTC area and it's taken me an hour on some days. And I'm not even going on the 805. It's just that area becomes a mess in both directions. There are many days where you aren't moving at all. And it seems there are always an accident that make things even worse.

Alternative routes? If you work on the 805 or anywhere near the 805/5, you're pretty much screwed. You can take some back roads, but it's not going to speed up your commute.

[futbol]

It used to be much worse.

It will get better; we just have to wait out a 10-year massive San Diego interstate/CalTrans system makeover. We are about half way through it, I think.

They still have to do things like seamlessly link I-5S to 56E.

[JohnAlt]

Originally Posted by shmoov_groovzsd

An alternative would be getting on the 15 from the Carroll Canyon Rd exit. From there just hop on 163.But it sounds like you are closer to the 805 side? I can't think of many alternatives from that side. Maybe take Camino Ruiz south to Miramar rd then west on Miramar to the 15.SD is more about following the path of least resistance vs actual physical distance

I wouldn't do either of these. BTW you'd be going east on Miramar to get to I-15.

If the OP is in central or east Mira Mesa, the way to go is to take Black Mountain Road south and if you don't turn right where it curves but stay straight it will become Kearny Villa Road. Shortly after that it crosses Miramar Road and is then like a freeway with little traffic with the 163 turnoff about two miles ahead.

Stay off Miramar Road and I-15, and also Mira Mesa Blvd if possible. Gold Coast Drive is a much easier east-west route in Mira Mesa.

[beera]

Ha I too live in Hillcrest and work in Mira Mesa! The trick is to start work at 7 am and leave at 4 pm...

[Pedro2000]

Originally Posted by futbol

It used to be much worse.

It will get better; we just have to wait out a 10-year massive San Diego interstate/CalTrans system makeover. We are about half way through it, I think.

They still have to do things like seamlessly link I-5S to 56E.

These are BS pipe dreams in pretty much every city I've worked or lived. Trains, buses, trolleys get some interest, some investment, but most of the time it gets put on the shelf for another administration. And so it goes. THe US, in general, is horrible with infrastructure and transportation upkeep. it's only when major accidents or issues come up that people notice. And it's on the news. People complain. And them most people go back to their old ways of thinking and very little is done.

Trains, trolleys, subways outside of places like NYC have a funding issue. If it's empty most of the time, it becomes more of a tourist thing. The problem with all of these transportation fixes is that it takes forever to get approved, forever to find funding, forever to start to get the land and environmental approvals, and then forever to actually build it. And nobody really seems to think of the future as much as we'd think.

So it's great that the new system should help traffic patterns of today. Except by the time it's all finished in a decade, there might be another 1+ million people working, living, and getting from point A to point B. So they build a system for 2010, except it's somewhat finished by 2020 without looking ahead at what might be needed at that time. And this isn't just a san diego thing, it's a worldwide thing.

So hoping to alleviate any of this mess, probably will always be a pipe dream. As it is in most cities around the world.

[SanDiegoDude]

Sorrento Valley seems poorly thought out in general.

I second the poster who said work a 7-4 shift if you can. That's what I do a lot of days.