California State Route 73, also called the Corona Del Mar Freeway and the San Joaquin Hills Transportation Corridor, is a 15 mile (24 km), 6-lane tollway that runs from Interstate 405 to Interstate 5 through the San Joaquin Hills . It runs approximately parallel to the Pacific Coast Highway and the San Diego Freeway. Its north terminus is Interstate 405 in Irvine, California near Harbor Boulevard. It then proceeds through the San Joaquin Hills and reaches its southern terminus of Interstate 5. There are no HOV lanes currently, but the medians have reserved spots if the need arises in the future for their construction.

History

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

Design and construction of the highway cost a total of $790 million dollars, with the total cost of the highway being $1.4 billion. The design and contruction 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, California State Highway 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. The contracting and construction firm hired for the project was Kiewit Bros.

Highway 73 was the first toll road to be financed with tax-exempt bonds on a stand-alone basis including construction and environmental risk. It also sports an innovative barrier-free electronic toll collection, with toll collection booths placed at the exit ramps instead of on the main highway.

Junctions and exits

Toll prices

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 table below lists the tolls at each of the tolled exits, both with and without Fastrak.

Additional landmarks

Route 73 passes straight 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).

External links

• Transportation Corridor Agencies
• Project Description at Kiewit

See also

• List of California state highways