JURUPA VALLEY (CNS) - The eastbound Pomona (60) Freeway between Riverside and Ontario will remain closed today to facilitate resurfacing projects, but motorists will get a break over Labor Day weekend, when no closures are planned.
For the fifth straight weekend, beginning Friday night, crews closed the entire eastbound 60 between Interstate 15 in Ontario and the 60/91/215 interchange in Riverside, roughly 13 miles. The closure is not scheduled to end until 5 a.m. Monday.
“Everything is going really well, and we've generally been opening it back up earlier than scheduled,” Caltrans District 8 spokeswoman Terri Kasinga told City News Service Thursday. “It's always positive when we can open early.”
Last weekend's closures were on the same schedule, and Kasinga noted that traffic impacts from the two-day TailGate Fest at Leal Ranch in Eastvale were not significant, despite the influx of people to the ranch, which is just off of Interstate 15.
The annual Norco Mounted Posse-PRCA Rodeo is slated to wrap up this evening, but according to Kasinga, the additional traffic on I-15 through Norco as a result of the event should not be problematic.
According to Caltrans, the weekend closures on the eastbound 60 will continue, over the same 55-hour periods, until Sept. 23. However, work will be suspended during Labor Day weekend, and the entire freeway will be available.
“There's a lot of work going on. We're making a lot of progress with the paving, upgrading the ramps and installing new guardrails (along the eastbound 60),” Kasinga said.
Officials said the rehabilitation work, which entails replacing slabs of pavement, is moving twice as fast because of the partial closures, which Caltrans has dubbed the “60 Swarm,” referring to multiple projects occurring over the next two years along the 60 freeway. Altogether, the swarm covers a 20- mile stretch, from Chino to downtown Riverside.
The first overnight closure of the westbound 60 is scheduled Sept. 27 and will also begin at 10 p.m., then end at 5 a.m. Sept. 30. Officials said the westbound closures will continue over the ensuing seven weekends, ending Nov. 18. Work will be suspended for Veterans Day weekend. Caltrans' objective is to have all the freeway closures finished by Thanksgiving.
In addition to the shutdowns, intermittent and extended lane closures are occurring in the construction zone, between Euclid Avenue in Ontario and the 60/91/215, officials said, adding that portions of the Interstate 15/Route 60 interchange in Ontario will also be closed.
Single lane closures began four weeks ago in several locations and will wrap up in November 2021, when the $134 million pavement replacement project is slated to conclude, according to Caltrans.
The other part of the 60 Swarm is comprised of bridge replacements, totaling $23 million. According to Caltrans, the Benson Avenue, Monte Vista Avenue and Pipeline Avenue overcrossings in Chino are all due to be razed and replaced with new spans. Alternating east- and westbound lane closures for the bridge work started three weeks ago.
Most of the overnight closures are occurring between Ramona Avenue and Reservoir Street in Chino.
Officials said the current bridges were constructed with dimensions that make them prone to being bumped by oversized truck loads. Over the years, the repeated minor hits have had a cumulative impact, requiring the two-lane bridges to be replaced.
More information is available at www.60Swarm.com, or via the 60 Swarm hotline: 833-607-9276.