Letters

Inquiry Regarding Extended Freeway Closures in San Diego and Orange Counties

December 15, 2025

 

Director Dina El-Tawansy

California Department of Transportation 

1120 N Street 

Sacramento, CA 95814

 

Commissioner Sean Duryee

California Highway Patrol 

601 North 7th Street

Sacramento, CA 95811

 

Chief Scott Wahl

San Diego Police Department

1401 Broadway 

San Diego, CA 92101

 

RE: Inquiry Regarding Extended Freeway Closures in San Diego and Orange Counties 

 

Dear Director El-Tawansy, Commissioner Duryee, and Chief Wahl, 

We are writing to request information regarding three recent closures of the Interstate 5 in San Diego and Orange Counties that resulted in significant and prolonged disruptions for tens of thousands of Californians. First, we want to be clear that public safety – including the safety of law enforcement and the general public – must always be the top priority. We commend all of law enforcement and first responders for putting their lives on the line and running to unpredictable and high-risk situations. At the same time, when closures of a critical interstate extend for hours, specifically during peak periods, careful examination and explanation of existing policies, procedures, and tools are warranted. 

Within the last 60 days, Interstate 5 has experienced three major closures in three separate and unique incidents. In each case, public safety was the reason for the shut down and motorists experienced limited to no advanced notice, significant standstills and congestion with minimal information, and substantial downstream impacts. The cumulative effect of those downstream impacts raises serious concerns about coordination, communication and operations of our freeway system. The three separate incidents are summarized below. 

  1. Friday, December 5, 2025, from approximately 12:19 p.m. to 8 p.m.: On the Del Mar Heights Road overpass, most lanes on Interstate 5 were closed for more than eight hours due to police activity with little-to-no communication and significant impacts to other regional and local streets and roads.
  2. Saturday, November 22, 2025, from approximately 1:05 a.m. to 3:30 p.m.: After a police pursuit initiating in Buena Park in the early morning hours, Interstate 5 was closed for nearly twelve hours with very limited options for commuters given the location of the freeway closure north of Oceanside adjacent to Camp Pendleton.
  3. October 18, 2025, from approximately 11 a.m. to 3 p.m.: Interstate 5 was closed in both directions at Camp Pendleton during the 250th U.S. Marine Corps celebration for up to four hours due to a live-fire demonstration. The announcement of the closure came the morning of the event, leaving many motorists unprepared with limited-to-no notice.

Collectively, these incidents underscore the need for greater clarity about how freeway closures are managed, how decisions are made in real time to address the incident, how to expeditiously reopen freeway operations, and how public communications are handled.

Accordingly, we request responses to the following questions: 

  1. What are existing policies and procedures for freeway closures due to police activity?
  2. How do your agencies coordinate to ensure freeways are reopened quickly and safely? What specific actions did your agencies take during the November 22 and December 5 incidents to expedite resolution and reopen the freeway?
  3. What challenges or resource limitations most commonly delay reopening? Was CHP sufficiently deployed to support the two incidents?
  4. How is real-time communication with the public managed, and what improvements can be made to ensure travelers receive adequate notice when closures are unavoidable? Are mass text message communications for freeway closures feasible?

Californians rely on our freeways for work, school, daily life and must be operational for general public safety. As the San Diego Union-Tribune pointed out in an editorial, a prolonged freeway closure is more than just a nuisance, it endangers lives – delaying people from getting to the emergency room or a doctor’s appointment, while elevating risks of high blood pressure or heart attacks for those caught in traffic. We’ve heard from many about the unintended consequences of the Dec. 5 shutdown: Parents could not pick up kids from childcare, people missed flights, workers couldn’t get to their jobs or get home from their jobs. When a major transportation artery is closed, it has profound negative rippling effects across our society. With that being the case, it’s crucial that we limit freeway closures as much as possible and we manage them thoughtfully, when they do occur.  

Sincerely, 

Senator Catherine S. Blakespear, District 38

Senator Steve Padilla, District 18

Senator Akilah Weber Pierson, District 39

Assemblymember David Alvarez, District 80

Assemblymember Tasha Boerner, District 77

Assemblymember Darshana Patel, District 76

Assemblymember Laurie Davies, District 74

San Diego City Council President Joe LaCava