California State Route 58

State Route 58
SR 58 highlighted in red
Route information
Maintained by Caltrans
Length	241 mi[1] (388 km)
Existed	1964–present
Major junctions
West end	US 101 in Santa Margarita
Major intersections	SR 33 at McKittrick I-5 near Buttonwillow SR 43 near Bakersfield SR 99 in Bakersfield SR 14 near Mojave US 395 at Kramer Junction
East end	I-15 in Barstow
Location
Counties	San Luis Obispo, Kern, San Bernardino
Highway system
State highways in California Interstate US State Scenic History Pre‑1964 Unconstructed Deleted Freeways
← SR 57 → SR 59

State Route 58 (SR 58) is a major east-west state highway in the U.S. state of California that runs across the Coast Ranges, the southern San Joaquin Valley, the Tehachapi Mountains, which border the southern Sierra Nevada, and the Mojave Desert. It runs between U.S. Route 101 near Santa Margarita and Interstate 15 in Barstow. It has junctions with Interstate 5 near Buttonwillow, State Route 99 in Bakersfield, State Route 202 in Tehachapi, State Route 14 near Mojave, and U.S. Route 395 at Kramer Junction. SR 58 also provides access to Edwards Air Force Base. At various points it is known as the Calf Canyon Highway, Carrisa Highway, Bakersfield-McKittrick Highway, Rosa Parks Highway, Rosedale Highway, Barstow-Bakersfield Highway, Bakersfield Tehachapi Highway, Kern County Korean War Veterans Memorial Highway, and Mojave-Barstow Highway.

Route description[]

Spring Wildflowers off SR 58 near California Valley, CA, 2010

State Route 58 between Santa Margarita and Buttonwillow is a winding mountain road through a thinly populated area. From its westernmost terminus at US 101 near Santa Margarita, a few miles north of San Luis Obispo, SR 58 heads east along the former US 101 (El Camino Real) for one mile. SR 58 then heads east and up the winding mountain road, passing through a thinly populated area and an intersection with SR 229. Alternatives such as SR 46 to the north or SR 166 to the south are recommended, as much of this section of SR 58 is prohibited to truck traffic. However, this section of SR 58 does pass through the Carrizo Plain, which is known for its scenic beauty and geological features, including the San Andreas Fault. SR 58 then takes another winding road before joining with State Route 33 (SR 33) in the small town of McKittrick. SR 33 then splits at the north end of McKittrick before SR 58 then enters another, but brief winding road. SR 58 then proceeds northeast for several miles before changing to an east-west alignment and reaching Buttonwillow. A few miles later, SR 58 has an interchange with Interstate 5 (I-5). Approximately 7 miles (11 km) east of I-5, SR 58 briefly joins SR 43 before continuing east and eventually reaching the Bakersfield city limits.

State Route 58 joins State Route 99 for about 2 miles (3.2 km) through Bakersfield before splitting as a freeway and heading east. SR 58 briefly enters expressway status with two at-grade intersections in the Caliente area before resuming freeway status east of Caliente. SR 58 then reaches the Tehachapi city limits and traverses the Tehachapi Pass before dropping out of the Tehachapi Mountains into the Antelope Valley at the town of Mojave. Freeway conditions continue from State Route 14 east of Mojave bypassing North Edwards, Edwards Air Force Base, Boron, and Kramer Junction. Approximately 10 miles (16 km) east of an interchange with U.S. Route 395, SR 58 resumes expressway status with two lanes in each direction until just before reaching the easternmost terminus at Interstate 15 in Barstow.

State Route 58 takes the southernmost route through the Sierra Nevada and allows motorists to travel between Northern California and points to the east, such as Las Vegas and Interstate 40, without having to face the extreme traffic congestion of greater Los Angeles. State Route 58 and Interstate 80 are the only freeways to cross the Sierra Nevada. The route also offers an alternative to the often treacherous Donner Pass to truckers traveling from the San Francisco Bay Area to points eastward; prior to the construction of Interstate 80, the road (as U.S. Route 466) was heavily used for this purpose.

SR 58 is part of the California Freeway and Expressway System,^[2] and east of I-5 is part of the National Highway System,^[3] a network of highways that are considered essential to the country's economy, defense, and mobility by the Federal Highway Administration.^[4] SR 58 is eligible for the State Scenic Highway System,^[5] but it is not officially designated as a scenic highway by the California Department of Transportation.^[6] SR 58 has several names throughout its length, including the Blue Star Memorial Highway (for its entire length); the Kern County Korean War Veterans Memorial Highway, for the section from SR 184 to the Kern County/San Bernardino County Line; and the Rosa Parks Highway, for the section between SR 99 and SR 184. The Korean War Veterans name honors the approximately 8,120 veterans from Kern County, while the section named for Rosa Parks honors the civil rights activist.^[7] The portion of SR 58 from Barstow to Bakersfield is sometimes referred to as the Barstow–Bakersfield Highway.^[8]

History[]

Westbound SR 58 in the Temblor Range, descending into the Carrizo Plain

A truck passes eastbound along the busy SR 58 through the Antelope Valley. The Tehachapi Mountains are visible in the distance.

State Route 58 did not exist as a California sign route until 1964, although previous to 1964, it was part of California Legislative Route 58. The other part of Legislative Route 58 is California's segment of Interstate 40; previous to 1964 it was a segment of US 66.

Prior to 1964 the segment of State Route 58 between Bakersfield and Barstow was signed U.S. Route 466. Also at that time, the segment of SR 58 between State Route 33 at McKittrick and State Route 99 in Bakersfield was signed as State Route 178. Although it was proposed for signing as Route 178 in 1934, the segment of Legislative Route 58 between US 101 near Santa Margarita and State Route 33 at McKittrick was not signed prior to 1964.

Note that US 466 was co-signed with US 99, now State Route 99, between Bakersfield and Famoso Junction. Between Famoso and US 101 at Paso Robles, US 466 largely became SR 46.

The eastern terminus was originally at I-15 in northeastern Barstow. SR 58 was rerouted to I-15 in Barstow south of the I-40 interchange in c. 2000. The former eastern terminus is now known as "Old Highway 58".

Freeway bypasses in Tehachapi, Boron, Mojave, Hinkley, and Kramer Junction were completed in c. 1975, 1981, 2003, 2017, and 2020, respectively.

Westside Parkway and the Centennial Corridor Project[]

In western Bakersfield, the Westside Parkway, a freeway running from Stockdale Highway (near Heath Road) east to Truxtun Avenue, was completed on April 15, 2015, with interchanges in between at Allen Road, Calloway Drive, Coffee Road, and Mohawk Street.^[9] Opening in stages since 2013, the road was originally under the jurisdiction of the city of Bakersfield. As part of the Centennial Corridor project, Caltrans is building an eastern extension of the Westside Parkway to the current junction of SR 58 and SR 99 at the West Bakersfield Interchange, but construction has been controversial since it displaced dozens of homes and businesses;^[10] by September 2017, all but a few buildings in the path had been demolished.^[11] Once the connection to SR 99 is completed (which is expected to occur in fall 2022^[12]), SR 58 will then be rerouted onto Stockdale Highway and the Westside Parkway, with later plans to upgrade Stockdale Highway from Heath Road west to Interstate 5 as a freeway.^[13] Bakersfield has already begun the transfer process, and the Westside Parkway is under Caltrans and California Highway Patrol jurisdiction effective February 5, 2021.^[14]

Business loops[]

Mojave[]

State Route 58 Business is a business route of California State Route 58 in Mojave. It provides access to downtown Mojave as Mojave-Barstow Highway. It also follows mostly the former routing of U.S. Route 466.

Tehachapi[]

State Route 58 Business is a business route of California State Route 58 in Tehachapi. It provides access to downtown Tehachapi as Tehachapi Boulevard. It also follows the former routing of U.S. Route 466 and is overlapped with State Route 202.

Boron[]

State Route 58 Business is a business route of California State Route 58 in Boron. It provides access to downtown Boron as Twenty Mule Team Road. It also follows the former routing of U.S. Route 466. It is signed from westbound Route 58 approaching the San Bernardino–Kern county line and the beginning of the Boron bypass.

Major intersections[]

Except where prefixed with a letter, postmiles were measured on the road as it was in 1964, based on the alignment that existed at the time, and do not necessarily reflect current mileage. R reflects a realignment in the route since then, M indicates a second realignment, L refers an overlap due to a correction or change, and T indicates postmiles classified as temporary (for a full list of prefixes, see California postmile § Official postmile definitions).^[15] Segments that remain unconstructed or have been relinquished to local control may be omitted. The numbers reset at county lines; the start and end postmiles in each county are given in the county column.

County	Location	Postmile [15][1][16]	Exit [17][18]	Destinations	Notes
San Luis Obispo SLO 0.00-57.15	​	0.00		US 101 – San Francisco, San Luis Obispo, Los Angeles	Interchange; western terminus; US 101 exit 211
	​	6.89		SR 229 north – Creston, Shandon
	​	45.20		Soda Lake Road – California Valley, Soda Lake	Serves Carrizo Plain National Monument
Kern KER 0.00-R143.86	McKittrick	15.41 33.45[N 1]		SR 33 south – Taft	West end of SR 33 overlap
		34.29[N 1] 15.42		SR 33 north – Coalinga	East end of SR 33 overlap
	Buttonwillow	27.28		Buttonwillow Drive to I-5 north
		31.64		I-5 (West Side Freeway) – Sacramento, Los Angeles	Interchange; I-5 exit 257
	Rosedale	39.96 8.11[N 2]		SR 43 north (Enos Lane north) – Shafter, Wasco	West end of SR 43 overlap
		9.16[N 2] 39.97		SR 43 south (Enos Lane south) – Taft	East end of SR 43 overlap; future SR 58 east to Stockdale Highway
	Bakersfield	51.81 25.65[N 3]		SR 99 north / SR 178 east (24th Street) – Fresno, Sacramento, Downtown Bakersfield	Interchange; west end of SR 99 overlap; SR 99 exit 26A northbound, 26 southbound
		​	West end of freeway
		24.60[N 3]	25	California Avenue – Civic Center	Exit number follows SR 99
		T52.14– R52.36	110A	SR 99 south – Los Angeles	East end of SR 99 overlap; West Bakersfield Interchange; left exit westbound; SR 99 exit 24
		T52.14– R52.36		Real Road	Closed; former westbound exit and eastbound entrance; future extension to Westside Parkway under construction
		23.62[N 3]		Stockdale Highway, Brundage Lane	Eastbound exit only, will be closed for Centennial Corridor construction
		R53.39– R53.52	111	Chester Avenue, H Street
		R54.42	112	SR 204 north (Union Avenue)	Former US 99
		R55.40	113	Cottonwood Road
		R56.41	114	Mt. Vernon Avenue
		R57.41	115	Oswell Street
	​	R58.44	116	Fairfax Road
	​	R59.44	117	SR 184 (Weedpatch Highway) / Morning Drive – Lamont	Weedpatch Highway not signed westbound, Morning Drive not signed eastbound
	Edison	R61.51	119	Edison Road – Edison
	​	R63.58	121	Comanche Drive – Arvin, Edison
	​	R65.68	123	Tower Line Road
	​	69.75	127	General Beale Road
	​	​	East end of freeway
	​	75.63		SR 223 west – Arvin	At-grade intersection
	​	​	West end of freeway
	Keene	80.24	137	Hart Flat Road
		82.06	139	Keene
		R85.15	142	Broome Road
	Tehachapi	R90.72	148	SR 202 (Tucker Road) – Tehachapi
		R91.67	149	Mill Street
		R94.16	151	Tehachapi Boulevard	Tehachapi Summit
	​	R99.49	156	Sand Canyon Road – Monolith
	​	R101.56	159	Cameron Road
	​	R108.90	165	SR 58 Bus. east – Mojave	Former US 466 east / SR 58 east
	​	R111.13	167	SR 14 – Bishop, Mojave	Former US 6
	​	R116.22	172	SR 58 Bus. west – Mojave	Former US 466 west / SR 58 west
	​	​		25th Street	At-grade intersection; east end of freeway
	​	R127.63		California City Boulevard – California City	At-grade intersection; west end of freeway
	​	R129.67	186	Edwards AFB
	North Edwards	R132.04	188	Clay Mine Road
	​	R136.40	193	Twenty Mule Team Road	Former US 466 east
	​	R137.77	194	Gephart Road, Rocket Site Road
	​	R139.00	Boron Rest Area
	Boron	R139.80	196	Borax Road (SR 58 Bus. east), Rocket Site Road
		R142.87	199	Boron Avenue
San Bernardino SBD R0.00-R34.81	Kramer Junction	R5.40	206	US 395 – Bishop, San Bernardino	Interchange
	​	​	East end of freeway
	​	​	West end of freeway
	Hinkley	R26.33	227	Hinkley Road
	​	R30.39	231	Lenwood Road
	Barstow	R33.65	233	CR 66 (West Main Street) – Barstow	Former US 66 / US 91
		R34.81	234	I-15 (Mojave Freeway) to I-40 – Las Vegas, San Bernardino	Eastern terminus; exit 234 is for I-15 southbound; I-15 exit 179
1.000 mi = 1.609 km; 1.000 km = 0.621 mi       Concurrency terminus       Incomplete access

Westside Parkway (Future SR 58)[]

This exit list consists of the former Bakersfield city-maintained freeway (now maintained by Caltrans) that will eventually become part of SR 58. All exits are unnumbered. The entire route is in Kern County.

Location	mi	km	Destinations	Notes
Rosedale			Stockdale Highway	West end of freeway; at-grade intersection; future SR 58 west to continue on Stockdale Hwy. to SR 43
Bakersfield			Allen Road
			Calloway Drive	Signed as separate north and south exits westbound
			Coffee Road
			Mohawk Street	No westbound exit
			Truxtun Avenue east	Temporary east end of freeway
			SR 99 – Los Angeles, Sacramento	Future extension to SR 58 east / SR 99 at the West Bakersfield Interchange; under construction
1.000 mi = 1.609 km; 1.000 km = 0.621 mi       Incomplete access       Unopened

See also[]

•  California Roads portal

References[]

External links[]

Wikimedia Commons has media related to California State Route 58.

Route map:

• Caltrans: Route 58 highway conditions
• California Highways State Route 58
• California @ AARoads.com - State Route 58