In a tragic week for San Diego, three fatalities have been reported within the span of just five days along the highway 94 eastbound to I-15 northbound connector. The deadly crashes on April 3 and March 29 have intensified worries regarding safety measures along the 94 corridor, a stretch of freeway that has increasingly become a hotspot for accidents since November, with several incidents resulting in fatalities.
On April 3, 619 News Media was among the first to arrive at the scene of the latest incident, where emergency crews assessed the damage. According to their report, a burgundy vehicle swerved off the roadway and launched over the side rail, clearing the lower lanes of SR-94 before colliding with a tree and bushes on the embankment below. Despite the prompt arrival of emergency responders, the driver was pronounced dead at the scene. In raw footage shared on YouTube, a damaged freeway sign looms ominously over the wreckage.
This tragic event followed closely on the heels of another fatal crash that occurred on March 29 at the same connector ramp. In this earlier case, a vehicle lost control, struck the same freeway sign, and plunged onto the lanes below—resulting in the instant deaths of both occupants.
Reflecting on the dangers of the transition, one local resident recalled traveling this route frequently back in 2009 after attending auctions at Father Joe’s Villages. With a need to cut across four lanes to access the far-left I-15 northbound connector, it was all too common to approach the sharp ramp at speeds too fast for the 25-35 mph curve.
“CalTrans needs to better post and mark the recommended safe speed for this ramp and install some flashing lights,” urged YouTuber Gi8904. “This is a left exit; vehicles are coming off the fast lane onto a ramp with an incline up to an abrupt left curve in the ramp. Third fatality in five days—so sad.”
Many shared similar sentiments in the hundreds of comments beneath the crash videos, echoing their apprehensions about navigating this treacherous curve. In addition to the accidents at the connector, other sections of the 94 have also proven just as deadly. Just a day after the April 3 crash, the CHP reported another fatal rollover in Lemon Grove, marking yet another point of concern along this already dangerous corridor.
Moreover, back on March 15, a violent crash near downtown made headlines when a vehicle traveling west on the 94 missed an on-ramp and flew off an embankment. The vehicle crashed onto I-5, flipped, and landed in the southbound lanes, severely injuring all four passengers. One was found in critical condition and required CPR.
Looking back further, on November 6, 2022, a 39-year-old man from San Dimas lost his life after his vehicle veered off the road while transitioning from westbound 94 to southbound I-15, landing in the eastbound lanes of the 94 where he was pronounced dead on the scene.
Jay King, summing up the frustration expressed by many local drivers, commented, “We need to completely rebuild several of these [areas] within San Diego County. Having paid taxes to the county for 30 years, I’m really disappointed by the lack of reinvestment in the freeway system. We’re in 2025, yet our roads are stuck in the 1960s.”
image source from：https://www.sandiegoreader.com/news/2025/apr/14/stringers-the-deadly-left-lane-exit-from-94-to-interstate-15/
