Balboa Avenue Off-Ramp From Northbound I-5 Closed This Weekend

SAN DIEGO, CA — A weekend closure of the Balboa Avenue off-ramp from northbound Interstate 5 began at 7 p.m. Friday and will continue until 5 a.m. Monday.

The closure is to accommodate construction to add a second track to the region’s coastal rail line, according to San Diego Association of Governments, which is spearheading the double-tracking effort in order to increase the capacity and efficiency of the region's passenger train services, Coaster and Amtrak, as well as its freight train services.

This marks the second weekend closure of the off-ramp. The first one occurred last weekend, as planned, without incident, according SANDAG Spokeswoman Helen Gao.

Detour Information

SANDAG and Caltrans are providing real-time closure information to Waze, a free navigation app for smartphones and traffics.

During this weekend's closure, motorists traveling on northbound I-5 to Morena Boulevard can go around the work area by exiting at Clairemont Drive/Mission Bay Drive, heading eastbound on Clairemont Drive, then turning right on Denver Street, right on Ingulf Street, and then right onto Morena Boulevard. They can then travel north to Balboa Avenue.

What's Next?

Gao said additional full weekend work and off-ramp closures may be necessary to complete the work.

As part of the regionwide double-tracking effort, SANDAG is undertaking the Elvira to Morena double-track project. In order to make way for this project, contractors must relocate existing underground water pipes near Balboa/Garnet avenues (just east of I-5).

This utility relocation effort has been underway for some time, with much of the work occurring at night. To complete the job as quickly as possible and with minimum disruption to traffic and the surrounding communities, workers need to occasionally close the northbound I-5 off-ramp at Balboa Avenue for entire weekends.