Skip to main content

Un-constructed California State Route 235

On my frequent travels through Stockton over the years on California State Route 99 and Interstate 5 I have noted the oddity of un-constructed California State Route 235.  CA 235 was meant to connect CA 99 to I-5 via what is now Hammer Lane.


According to CAhighways.org the precursor route to un-built CA 235 was planned as LRN 260 which was adopted in 1959.

CAhighways.org on LRN 260

The planned route of LRN 260 first appears on the 1960 State Highway City Insert and is shown north of Stockton intersecting Lower Sacramento Street and Thorton Street heading west from US 99/US 50/LRN 4 to LRN 238 (future I-5).

1960 State Highway Map City Insert

When LRN 260 was initially designated it wasn't long before Signed County Route J8 had been applied over Hammer Lane west from US 99/US 50 to Thorton Street in 1960.  J8 continued northward onto a terminus in south Sacramento.

CAhighways.org on Signed County Route J8

At the time LRN 260 and CR J8 had been created Hammer Lane only existed west from US 99 to Thorton Street.  By the 1964 State Highway Renumbering LRN 260 had been re-designated as part of the future CA 235.  This change can been seen by comparing the 1963 State Highway Map City Insert to the 1964 Edition.

1963 State Highway Map City Insert

1964 State Highway Map City Insert

For reference even the 1935 Division of Highways Map of San Joaquin County shows Hammer Lane extending west from US 99/US 50 to Thorton Street.

1935 San Joaquin County Highway Map

According to CAhighways.org before Hammer Lane was extended to I-5 the traversable route of un-built CA 235 was listed as Eight Mile Road.  According to CAhighways.org San Joaquin County dropped interest in CA 235 November of 1993 when Eight Mile Road was adopted as a County Maintained arterial street.  Interestingly the un-built CA 235 shows on the 1990 State Highway Map City Insert still being aligned over Hammer Lane.

1990 State Highway Map City Insert

For reference Hammer Lane appears to have been completed to I-5 was the route is shown extended west to the Interstate on Historicaerials.com by comparing the 1977 topographical map of Stockton to the 1980 edition.

Despite not being actively sought by San Joaquin County the planned route of CA 235 never has been legislatively dropped and appears on the 2005 State Highway Map City Insert.

2005 State Highway Map City Insert

For reference Hammer Lane is accessible from CA 99 Exit 258 and I-5 Exit 478.  The photos below are from CA 99 northbound approaching Hammer Lane. 




Comments

Popular posts from this blog

Bleriot Ferry - Alberta

  Alberta operates six ferries scattered throughout the province. Roughly twenty to twenty-five kilometers up the Red Deer River from the town of Drumheller is one of the most scenic ferry crossings in all of Wild Rose Country, the Bleriot Ferry. Using the North Dinosaur Trail (Alberta Highway 838, or AB 838), the Bleriot Ferry provides a scenic river cruise of sorts in the Canadian Badlands. The Bleriot Ferry started operating in 1913 as the Munson Ferry when a few bridges crossed the Red Deer River. The ferry was started by Andre Bleriot, the brother of famed early aviator Louis Bleriot, who became famous for being the first person to fly over the English Channel. At the time, the Alberta provincial government commissioned local residents to run the ferries. There were several ferries along the Red Deer River, and not only did they serve as vital transportation links, but they also served as local social hubs, since everyone had to take the ferries to go places. Over time, as the...

Interstate 40's Tumultuous Ride Through the Pigeon River Gorge

In the nearly 60 years Interstate 40 has been open to traffic through the Pigeon River Gorge in the mountains of Western North Carolina, it has been troubled by frequent rockslides and damaging flooding, which has seen the over 30-mile stretch through North Carolina and Tennessee closed for months at a time. Most recently, excessive rainfall from Hurricane Helene in September 2024 saw sections of Interstate 40 wash away into a raging Pigeon River. While the physical troubles of Interstate 40 are well known, how I-40 came to be through the area is a tale of its own. Interstate 40 West through Haywood County near mile marker 10. I-40's route through the Pigeon River Gorge dates to local political squabbles in the 1940s and a state highway law written in 1921. A small note appeared in the July 28, 1945, Asheville Times. It read that the North Carolina State Highway Commission had authorized a feasibility study of a "...water-level road down [the] Pigeon River to the Tennessee l...

I-73/I-74 and NC Future Interstates Year in Review 2024

Welcome to another annual review of progress in constructing North Carolina's New and Future Interstate routes. While 2024 was not too exciting, with no new segments of major routes opening, there was 1 new interstate signing, another proposed new interstate route, and the near opening of a new segment for 2 routes. As tradition, I will start off with a review of what happened with I-73 and I-74 and then move on to the major news of the year about the other new and future routes. Work continued on the I-73/I-74 Rockingham Bypass through the year. The last few months have been hoping for news of its opening before 2025, without luck. Signs of its near completion included the placement of new signs, many with interstate shields uncovered, along the Bypass and intersecting roadways. For example, these went up along US 74 East: Overhead signage at Business 74 exit which contains the future ramp to I-73 North/I-74 West. Signage was also updated heading west on US 74 approaching the unop...