Reader's Choice: Worst Intersection ... and the Winner Is Ortega and the I-5

You voted. And voted. And .

But there may be some hope on the horizon, at least for that one.

Last week, it was a close battle between the Ortega-I-5 with 37 votes and Del Obispo Street at the railroad tracks with 32. The city and Orange County Transportation Authority are looking into that situation, . 

But . 

The project will not only make life easier for people getting on and off the freeway, it will also help local residents pass through the intersection, Tracey Lavelle, office chief of public information/governmental affairs said Monday.

“The project is definitely going to improve the intersection. In fact, it will remove this chokepoint altogether,” Lavelle said.

Part of the back-up is because people exiting southbound I-5 at Ortega who want to continue west must first wait at the light at Ortega, then wait for a left-turn light at Del Obispo, Lavelle said. The new configuration will eliminate those turns.

“There is no longer the right hand turn from the southbound I-5 off ramp and then an immediate left-hand turn to go down Del Obispo. It will be a smooth flowing transition from turning right at the off ramp onto Ortega Highway directly down to Del Obispo,” she said.

Other least favorite intersections included Del Obispo at Alipaz Street, with 16 votes, and the San Juan Creek-Valle roads intersection, with 12 votes.