LA JOLLA, Calif. (KGTV) -- Construction on the Mid-Coast Corridor trolley project that will connect Old Town to the UTC area is entering its final stages. That means traffic will be impacted on Genesee Avenue due to road closures.
"We're certainly in the homestretch," project director Ramon Ruelas cannot wait to share his project with the world. But before they can get run the trolleys up above, they need to fix what is down below.
"We need to restore a Genesee Avenue to a condition that it existed prior to when we started construction," Ruelas said.
Between Friday, April 16 to Monday, April 26, there will be seven chunks of Genesee Avenue that will be fully closed for 21 hours at a time. That includes the major intersection of Genesee Avenue and La Jolla Village Drive.
The 21-hour closures include:
- Friday, April 16 through Saturday, April 17
Southbound Genesee Avenue from Campus Point Drive to Eastgate Mall
- Sunday, April 18 through Monday, April 19
Southbound Genesee Avenue from Eastgate Mall to La Jolla Village Drive
- Monday, April 19 through Tuesday, April 20
Genesee Avenue and La Jolla Village Drive intersection
- Tuesday, April 20 through Wednesday, April 21
Southbound Genesee Avenue from La Jolla Village Drive to Nobel Drive
- Wednesday, April 21 through Thursday, April 22
Northbound Genesee Avenue from Nobel Drive to La Jolla Village Drive
- Thursday, April 22 through Friday, April 23
Northbound Genesee Avenue from La Jolla Village Drive to Eastgate Mall
- Sunday, April 25 through Monday, April 26
Northbound Genesee Avenue from Eastgate Mall to Regents Road
All closures will be in effect from 8 p.m. on the first day to 5 p.m. the following day.
Scott Slater is the founder of Spitfire Tacos and Head Lettuce, two restaurants right in the middle of the closure zone. Since the pandemic began, he said his third-party delivery orders went up from 13% to 36%. With the closures, he's worried that delivery drivers may get lost.
"I think the most concerning thing with me just let traffic in and out for those delivery drivers," Slater said. "When you're delivering hot food, you want it to be as fresh as possible. This might take an extra 10 to 20 minutes for our food to get to our customers."
"There will be detours in place during that time to redirect traffic around the work area so that hopefully it doesn't distract people too much for their normal driving habits," Ruelas said.
Detours include Voigt Drive, Campus Point Drive, Health Sciences Drive, Regents Road, Nobel Drive, and Town Center Drive.
Construction equipment has decorated the UTC area since the $2.2 billion project began in 2017. Once it is completed in November, Ruelas said the unique elevated tracks would connect Old town to the UTC area, giving access to a whole new group of people. Slater said he is excited about the future.
"In the long run, we see this as a positive investment for the neighborhood. We've survived a lot worse. If we can get through last year, we could get through a couple of road closures," Slater laughed.
Residents may begin seeing trolleys in the area by July when SANDAG will begin test rides. The project is on track and will be open to the public in November.
