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The East Los Angeles Interchange complex is the busiest freeway interchange in the world, with its southern portion handling over 550,000 vehicles per day (2008 AADT). The northern portion, called the San Bernardino Split, is often considered a separate interchange. The interchange was named the Eugene A. Obregon Memorial Interchange, to honor U.S. Marine Corps Medal of Honor recipient Eugene A. Obregon.
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Description
At the time of its construction in the early 1960s, the East Los Angeles Interchange was considered a civil engineering marvel. Located along the east bank of the Los Angeles River in the Los Angeles district of Boyle Heights, east of Downtown Los Angeles, the interchange comprises six freeway segments; that is, there are six freeway paths of travel into the complex. The actual number of numbered highways intersecting at this interchange is four:
The interchange is so complex because the intersecting freeways shift alignments and directions:
There is not complete freedom of movement within the interchange. Traffic flowing into it on certain freeways cannot leave it on all of the others. For example, there is no direct connector between the westbound Pomona Freeway (SR 60) and the southbound Santa Ana Freeway (I-5) (and vice versa); travelers wanting to make this transition must exit at the Pomona Freeway's interchange with the Long Beach Freeway (Interstate 710) located three miles (5 km) to the east, head south, and then transition to the Santa Ana Freeway at the interchange between those two freeways. Also, there is no direct connector from southbound Santa Ana Freeway (US 101) to northbound Golden State Freeway (I-5) (and vice versa); travelers wanting to make this transition must exit at the Four Level Interchange with the Arroyo Seco Parkway (State Route 110) located several miles to the west, head northeast, and then transition to the Golden State Freeway at the interchange between those two freeways. There is also no direct connector from southbound Santa Ana Freeway (US 101) to westbound Santa Monica Freeway (I-10) (and vice versa); travelers wanting to make this transition must exit at the Four Level Interchange with State Route 110 located several miles to the west, head southwest, and then transition to the Santa Monica Freeway at the interchange between those 2 freeways.
Further complication is caused by the varying designs of each intersecting freeway and their related transition roads. Some have four lanes and are relatively straight and wide, while others have one lane, are narrow, or have curves with tighter radii or cambers. Traffic congestion is thus exacerbated as vehicles moving at high speed on the wider transition roads try to merge with slower moving vehicles coming from the narrow transition roads.
History
Although not commonly called such by residents and other reporters, the freeway intersection was often called "Malfunction Junction" by former KNX traffic reporter Bill Keene, because of its complicated interchange structure. The interchange has also been referred to as "The Beast" LA Interchange, the "East Delay" Interchange and the "Nickel/Dime" during traffic reports.
