KERN COUNTY, Calif. (KERO) — SoCalGas and the Ridge Route Preservation Organization are all gas, no brakes when it comes to restoring the historic road.
- The Old Ridge Route received some much-needed TLC as a part of local preservation efforts.
- SoCalGas has agreed to repair roughly six miles of the old Ridge Route road.
- SoCalGas says it expects to fill 42 potholes within two weeks.
- To learn how you can support the preservation of this road, visit the Ridge Route Preservation Organization website.
BROADCAST TRANSCRIPT:
Imagine a time without Interstate 5, where traveling between Los Angeles County and Kern County was connected by the historic roadway known as "the Ridge Route."
In 1915, the Old Ridge Route road was built, revolutionizing transportation from the stagecoach, to the Model T.
Through rain and shine, the road still stands.
But over the years, the 100+-year-old concrete has gradually deteriorated, leaving behind massive potholes.
Repairing these potholes is just one of the projects that people like Sydney Croasmun with the Ridge Route Preservation Organization takes on.
“The goal for this is to not only make it more accessible for the public but to make it more accessible for SoCalGas to access their pipelines and for emergency services to get up here quicker,” said Croasmun.
Now, an additional supporter is getting their hands dirty.
“One of the priorities for SoCalGas is maintaining the safety and reliability of our natural gas system. And that means we have to access our pipelines and we have a transmission line which passes through the Los Angeles National Forest. And for us to access that pipeline, we use the Old Ridge Route Road,” said Rub Duchow with SoCalGas.
The history between SoCalGas and the old Ridge Route dates back to before the road ever existed, with the gas company’s first pipeline in the area being built in 1912.
Duchow says that SoCalGas is determined to help maintain the integrity of the road; but there’s a problem.
“We have some heavy equipment and trucks that come through here, and there’s some pothole areas that heavy trucks will contribute to further degrading the road,” said Duchow.
Now, SoCalGas is funding and filling the potholes with a fresh layer of asphalt.
“We have about 42 or so potholes over a 5-10 mile stretch of the road that we’ll be filling in and repairing and so that stretch of road is easier to access,” said Duchow.
Croasmun says the crew has been ‘cooking with gas,’ working hard in their two-week project to fill all 42 potholes.
“... This has been a project I have been working on for such a long time and it’s been a goal and a dream of mine to get up here and get this all repaired,” said Croasmun.
Not only rebuilding a piece of history, but building on the century-long connection… that continues to this day.
“The Angeles National Forest is happy because others who access this area can also do it more safely,” said Duchow. “And the Ridge Route Preservation Organization is happy because this was work that they had been trying to do on their own. And now we have come in and done that.”
To learn how you can support the preservation of this road, visit the Ridge Route Preservation Organization website.
Stay in Touch with Us Anytime, Anywhere:
