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The new I-15/91 connector. | Image courtesy of the Riverside County Transportation Commission
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Motorists using toll lanes on Interstate 15 or the Riverside (91) Freeway in Corona now have direct access to either corridor, thanks to new Express Lanes that opened Tuesday.
The 15/91 Express Lanes came available shortly before 5 a.m. after crews put the finishing touches on a striping project and removed old k-rails.
The $270 million project was one of the last components of the larger “91 Express Lanes Project” that began a decade ago.
“Over the last two years, I have seen the new connector being built by our hard-working crews,” Riverside County Transportation Commissioner and Norco City Councilman Berwin Hanna said in a statement. “Residents along the 15 and the 91 will benefit from having a reliable trip for generations. The 15/91 express connector will help drivers in the northwest get to their businesses and homes promptly while keeping our communities connected.”
The project involved erecting two new connector bridges to transition traffic from express lanes on the eastbound 91 to northbound I-15, and from the southbound I-15 to the westbound 91.
The project began in April 2021 and required multiple partial closures of the 91, generally on weekends, as crews installed structural supports and expanded existing lanes.
A 2,406-foot bridge was the main feature of the new transition, which enables motorists traveling within the two lanes on either freeway to remain in them without having to move into general purpose lanes.
“With the opening of the connector, a regional link now exists so that our residents can have a reliable trip within and outside our county,” Supervisor Karen Spiegel said in a statement. “Building transportation infrastructure takes time. RCTC completed this project in record time so that our residents can get home faster to be with friends and family.”
According to the RCTC, the express lanes connector is the third toll system to come online since 2017, when express lanes were established through downtown Corona. The I-15 Express Lanes Project was completed in April 2021, providing north- and southbound tolled travel between Eastvale and El Cerrito, covering roughly 15 miles.
The toll system requires motorists to have a FasTrak transponder attached to their vehicles. The transponders are interrogated by electronic scanners placed along the route, and drivers pay according to how many segments of the tolled corridor they use.
Anyone interested in opening a FasTrak account can establish one at www.riversideexpress.com, or by calling 855-951-1500.
