According to Daniel Faigin, Route 58 may soon be upgraded to a freeway in San Bernardino county: "Specifically, there is a 2-lane segment of Route 58 that runs about 4 miles of both sides of Kramer Junction (Route 58/US 395 intersection). There is then a portion of 4-lane expressway (10 miles or so), and then 2-lane highway through Hinkley, and just past Lenwood Road west of Barstow. The new portion of the Route 58 freeway then begins, from 1/2 mile east of Lenwood Road to I-15. Caltrans has begun the process of scoping out the Hinkley section of Route 58 for upgrade to 4-lane expressway and the portion surrounding Kramer Junction won't be too far behind."
Route 58 from Edison Highway east of Bakersfield to Barstow was once U.S. Route 466. From there, the route followed current Route 15 to Las Vegas, Nevada. It then went southeast, following U.S. Route 93 to its parent route, U.S. Route 66, which is now Interstate Route 40 in Arizona. West of La Panza Rd, U.S. Route 466 continued northwest on La Panza until reaching nowaday Route 41 at Creston, where it would follow Route 41 to its end with Route 1 in Morro Bay. This route ceased to exist in California in 1964; it was completely decomissioned elsewhere in 1971. For more information, visit Casey Cooper's website on U.S. 466.
A new alignment of Route 58 west of Barstow, from one mile east of Community Boulevard to Route 15, opened around 1997. The former alignment that ended at Route 15 but north of Barstow is now plainly known as "Old Highway 58." Another new freeway alignment bypassing Mojave is now open. Route 58 from Bakersfield to Barstow is almost a full-fledged freeway, with a few at-grade crossings still around. This will eventually be an extension of Interstate Route 40.
Route 58 from:
From Route 99 to the Kern/San Bernardino County Line. However, there are two at-grade interchanges west of Tehachapi; one of these is at Route 223. From Route 99 to Route 184, it is called the "Rosa Parks Highway", in honor of the Tuskegee, Alabama woman who on December 1, 1955 was arrested for refusing to give up her seat on a bus to a white man. This incident marked the beginning of the equal rights movement in this country, and Rosa Parks is often called the "Mother of the Modern Day Civil Rights Movement".
Route 58 from Route 14 near Mojave to Route 15 near Barstow. [CS&HC Sec. 263.4]
Where Route 33 meets, there's the town of McKittrick. Here, there's a place known as the McKittrick Brea Pits.
If you plan to spend a night at Mojave, you may do so at the Best Western Desert Winds on Sierra Highway (Route 14). The nearest attraction here is Edwards Air Force Base.
Surprisingly, the town of Boron has several attractions, too. The most important one is the Rio Tinto Borax company, which operates California�s largest open pit mine and one of the richest borate deposits on the planet. Borates are used to form polymers (like zinc borate, which is used in fire retardants), and is often used for timber protection and in detergents and household cleaners. The visitor's center is north on Borax Road. Now, between 1883 and 1889, these borates were transported by a twenty-mule team. An entire museum (not to mention a road paralleling Route 58) is dedicated to the Twenty-Mule Team.
There's a truck stop past Buttonwillow at Route 5, where it has an Exxon, a Unocal 76 with an auto repair center, yet another Exxon, this one with a mart, a Texaco which is near a truck stop, a Chevron, an Arco with a mart, a Shell with a mart, McDonald's, Taco Hut, a Burger King, Denny's, and a coffee shop. All but the Exxon with the mart lie on the east side of Route 5.
Route 202 in Tehachapi takes you to the Brite Valley and dead-ends at the California Correctional Institution.
A rest area is available four miles west of Boron.