State Route 142, Part One.
Valencia Ave to Carbon Canyon Rd in Brea, through the Carbon Canyon.
Originally defined in 1933 as a spur of LRN 77 (now SR 71), LRN 177 became SR 142 in the 1964 renumbering. The route number 142 is obviously a spur of the now decommissioned SR 42, who's segment in Brea was transferred in 1968 to SR 90 (Imperial Hwy) primarily for 42's freeway segment in Yorba Linda. SR 142 is still an active highway on CalTrans' books. It's the only highway between Orange and San Bernardino counties directly, as all others either go through Riverside county or Los Angeles before reaching San Bernardino county limits. It's a common, albeit tedious, auto bypass of SR 57 through Carbon Canyon, usually taken due to the congestion caused by the SR 57/SR 60 overlap just north of Brea Canyon. Signage is spotty - the route has no begin shields, only one END shield posted for eastbound traffic, 2 directional shields, and one reassurance shield on the eastbound side for it's 12 miles length. It's primary purpose nowadays is to serve the residents of Carbon Canyon. Most of the highway is routed along Carbon Canyon Rd, although it goes south in Brea along Valencia Ave to meet SR 90 (former SR 42, 142's parent), and east on Chino Hills Pkwy in Chino Hills for it's final descent to SR 71. A future expansion has been on the books since the 1950's to build a freeway from SR 71 to SR 210 (former SR 30), although seeing as how SR 71 is still stuck as an expressway in some areas, I wouldn't expect this to be completed anytime soon.
Just after turning, we don't see a begin shield, just this advancement shield. The arrow really should just say EAST, but Caltrans does what they want, particularly in Orange County (as we'll see). With the new development to our right, I'm surprised this survived. (Truth be told, it's been damaged for a while).
|
MM 4.2. Wow. It's not feasible (nor interesting enough) to warrant posting photos every tenth of a mile, so from here on out I'll only point out the halves and wholes, and historically interesting ones. Note that this only continues through Orange County. San Bernardino picks up it's usual every-half-mile deal on mile markers.
|