Grapevine Opens After 36-Hour Closure

The 5 freeway at the Grapevine re-opened Friday morning after about 36 hours of closure due to snow, according to the California Transportation Department. Caltrans District 6 tweeted: “Grapevine I-5 is now open with CHP escorting traffic over the pass. Please drive carefully and follow the lead CHP vehicle at a safe speed and distance.” The Grapevine is a major thoroughfare for trucks between Southern California and Northern California and local industrial complexes such as the Tejon Ranch. The Business Journal reached out to representatives at Tejon Ranch Co. but did not hear back by press time. Authorities had shut down the Grapevine on Christmas Day as a strong winter storm passed through Southern California, dropping rainfall and heavy snow on the mountains which continued to cause travel delays Friday. Snow had covered the mountains along the 15 freeway in the Cajon Pass on the way to Las Vegas. In Santa Clarita, California Highway Patrol shut down traffic on the 5 freeway at the south end of the Grapevine in Castaic near the Lake Hughes Road exit. Also, traffic on the 14 freeway in Palmdale slowed to a crawl Friday morning after slick roads caused several crashes, including toppling a big rig down a snow-covered embankment near Pearblossom Highway, according to the California Highway Patrol. Looking ahead, meteorologists are expecting more rain late Sunday through Monday albeit not as intense as this past week’s storm, according to Andrew Rorke at the National Weather Service in Oxnard.