SR-56 bike path extension opens after nearly two decades in the works
SAN DIEGO (FOX 5/KUSI) — An extension to the State Route 56 bike path through Carmel Valley was officially opened to the public on Thursday, marking the end of a years-long, $11.3 million project to link the trail with nearby transit hubs and parts of the coast.
The new stretch of the paved bike path runs under the Interstate 5, completing an 8-mile addition that connects with Old Sorrento Valley Road and other popular paths — the Coastal Rail Trail, which runs along the region’s train tracks, and I-5 North Coastal Trail.
It replaces the narrow dirt trail that ran from where the SR-56 bike path previously ended, just 200 feet shy of I-5, and a quarter-mile “plug” under the freeway that helped to direct flood waters to the Los Penasquitos Lagoon. About $4 million went into that work, Caltrans said.
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“This has been a long awaited project from both Caltrans and the community here … They’ve always wanted to connect the Carmel Valley bike path to the North County bike paths that go north to south,” Allan Kosup, Caltrans District 11 North Coast Corridor director, told FOX 5/KUSI ahead of the bike path’s opening on Thursday.
The project has been in the works for nearly two decades, according to Caltrans, enduring several delays due to the challenges of running the path under I-5. Flood mitigation efforts due to a creek in the area also posed a difficulty in getting the project off the ground.
“For a long time, we didn’t think it was possible, but one of the engineers came up with a creative idea about what if we share the channel and the bike path and get joint use out of it,” Kosup said.
“What we’ve built here is a reinforced floor, so to speak, so that 340 days out of the year and then during really high flood flows in the winter — 10, 20 days a year — it may be impassable,” he continued. “But we think it’s the right solution to really maximize the opportunity.”
Before the bike path extension broke ground, Kosup said the journey bicyclists had to take was quite “uncomfortable,” running through busy streets and interchanges in Carmel Valley to get from the SR-56 path to the north-south trails.
“This has really been a barrier for robust bike usage,” he explained. “Families are not going to use it, you’re only going to (see) the real experienced riders through there. This really gives us an opportunity to unlock the potential of the investments we’ve already made in bike paths.”
In the future, Caltrans and community partners involved with TransNet projects hope to expand this bike path network even more, with plans in the works to get the dedicated trail extended down towards Mission Bay.
Caltrans is also working to get an ambitious, “sea-to-sea” bike path stretching from the Salton Sea in the east to the Pacific Ocean. The section of bike path opened on Thursday marks the completion of another leg of that project, the transit agency said.
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“The SR-56 Bike path extension is another step in ensuring people of all ages and abilities have equitable access to safe and convenient connections,” said SANDAG and San Diego County Board of Supervisors Chairwoman Nora Vargas. “This new bikeway extension enhances access to the coast, transit, and nearby trails, filling a critical gap in our regional bike network and across the region.”
However, construction along SR-56 is not quite over yet, with Caltrans still working on other parts of a massive project aimed at reducing local traffic congestion in the area. The bike path was one part of that nearly $50 million project.
Crews are currently working to add new HOV lanes along the roadway, with Caltrans expecting it to be completed in early summer 2025. The transit agency is also hoping to build a new connector between northbound I-5 and SR-56, which is currently seeking funding sources.
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