Ridge Route Preservation Organization

We are so excited to announce that SoCal Gas has offered to repair potholes 6 miles of the Old Ridge Route. This includes the stretch off the 138 near Gorman, which is open to the public. This will greatly increase accessibility for the public, make access for pipeline maintenance easier and smoother access for emergency services such as fire and ambulances. 

This came to light after SoCal Gas had been doing maintenance on their pipeline. Part of the agreement when it comes to protecting this historic road is to lay heavy rubber mats along the edges of the concrete and areas where the road is crumbling. 

• If you would like to send a thank you to the road crew and SoCal Gas, please do so here

I ran into their contracted construction manager while doing a sweep of the road and talked with him about the work they’ve been doing on the road and told him about our volunteer Pothole Project. He proposed that – instead of using the temporary fix – the rubber matting – they could help us with a permanent repair in those crumbling areas.  

The history of SoCal Gas and the Old Ridge Route are deeply intertwined. Construction started on their first pipeline through the area in 1912, under the name Midway Gas Company. The pipeline was operational in 1913 – the same year the Old Ridge Route was surveyed, meaning their first pipeline actually predates the road. This first pipeline ran from Taft to Glendale. 

I don’t think people fully realize how vital this corridor is when it comes to infrastructure. When the Old Ridge Route was dreamt up, California was on the verge of splitting into two states – this mountain range becoming the border. To get from Bakersfield to LA was nearly 24 hours in travel time, through rough stagecoach roads that often flooded, became muddy and developed ruts. It was a treacherous journey of roughly 180 miles and grades of 30%. That rough road cut off trade from north to south. In central CA, San Francisco merchants were preferred to LA merchants due to unpredictable travel times.

When the Ridge Route opened up in 1915, it changed the course of history. It allowed goods to be delivered from the port in Los Angeles to central California. It brought Central California’s food to Los Angeles, and opened up a much safer route for travel. This road is written into the history of so many Southern California families – just ask your grandparents about it. 

And while this road was so influential to the history of California, it is often forgotten. After it was bypassed in 1933, it remained largely unmaintained – left to the elements. When a disastrous rainy season hit  in 2005, causing a number of landslides making the road impassable, most of the road running through the Angeles National Forest was closed indefinitely – and still remains that way to this day. 

The Ridge Route Preservation Organization worked to have the landslides repaired. We hold regular volunteer work days and have been diligently working towards getting the road in good enough shape to re-open it. That’s where SoCal Gas comes in – to have such a large stretch of the road repaired is a big leap in the road’s preservation and towards getting this road reopened.

If you would like to send a thank you to the road crew and SoCal Gas, please do so here