Quake-Caused Freeway Buckling Is Repaired

Three lanes of the northbound Golden State Freeway near Gorman were reopened Saturday after Caltrans workers smoothed out a two-mile stretch of buckled roadway caused by Friday’s earthquake, authorities said.

The lanes in a two-mile stretch of the freeway between Hungry Valley Road and California 138, about five miles south of Gorman, were closed about 4 p.m. Friday after a motorist noticed the pavement had buckled, said CHP Officer Luis Bravo.

Only one northbound lane remained open during the repair work, but little traffic congestion resulted from the closure, Bravo said. The longest reported delay was 10 minutes.

California Department of Transportation work crews cut away the buckled asphalt and concrete and replaced the roadbed, department spokesman Mesfin Hailu said.

The closed lanes were reopened about 9:30 a.m. Saturday, authorities said.

The buckling resulted when sections of the freeway “butted together and heaved up into the air,” said Jim Parsons, another Caltrans spokesman.

Friday’s quake, which measured 4.0 on the Richter scale, struck an area east of Castaic at 10:41 a.m. Friday. No injuries and little damage other than the freeway bump was reported.

Hailu said a raised roadbed could cause damage to vehicles “if the drop-off is sudden.” But CHP officers said no damage to vehicles had been reported.

Caltrans workers were scheduled to return to the Gorman area today to reinspect the freeway.