The Oceanside City Council Wednesday directed staff to research three plans for exit routes for its Capistrano neighborhood, which increasingly finds itself boxed in.
The neighborhood of homes – which borders State Route 76 to the south, Interstate 5 to the west, Camp Pendleton to the north and a canyon to the east – is accustomed to traffic buildups. But security threats increase during periods of heightened conflicts like the Iran war, and residents have found themselves blocked from accessing their homes for hours at a time in recent months. They also worry about wildfires and other emergencies.
Staff presented the City Council with 10 options Wednesday to help solve the problem, and City Council voted unanimously to have staff further research three of them. They also pledged to continue working on short term solutions given each of the options will take upwards of 7 years and tens of millions of dollars.
The options are:
- Connecting North Loretta Street to State Route 76, building a bridge over the San Luis Rey River and adding a signalized leg to the existing Loretta Street and State Route 76 intersection. It would require modifying the San Luis Rey River Trail. Cost $90 million.
- Build a one-way on-ramp access from North Loretta Street to State Route 76. This could be done without impacting the San Luis Rey River Trail and without impacting State Route 76 as much as a signalized leg. Cost $90 million.
- Connect Capistrano Drive to State Route 76. Add a signalized leg to the Loretta Street and State Route 76 intersection. It would require modifying the San Luis Rey River Trail. Cost: $60 million.
What do you think they should do?