Caltrans: Beware the 60 Freeway Swarm Closures, Beginning Friday Night

JURUPA VALLEY (CNS) - Half of the Pomona (60) Freeway between Riverside and Ontario will be shut down Friday night and remain closed until Monday morning to facilitate resurfacing projects, and Caltrans officials are urging motorists to be prepared to find alternate routes.
   Beginning at 10 p.m. Friday, crews will close the entire eastbound 60 between Interstate 15 in Ontario and the 60/91/215 interchange in Riverside.
The closure will not end until 5 a.m. Monday. According to Caltrans, the weekend closures on the eastbound 60 will continue, over the same 55-hour periods, until Sept. 23.
   However, there will be no closures over Labor Day weekend.
   ``The contract allows these weekend closures in order to expedite pavement work, rather than have night and daytime closures for long periods of time,'' Caltrans District 8 spokeswoman Terri Kasinga said during a media briefing in Jurupa Valley yesterday (Tuesday).
   The closures are part of what Caltrans has dubbed the ``60 Swarm,'' referring to multiple projects occurring over the next two years along the freeway. The ``Swarm compilation'' will cover a 20-mile stretch, from Chino to downtown Riverside, Kasinga said.
   Officials acknowledged that the weekend disruptions will be hard on
travelers and businesses that depend on the traffic, but weekday work commuters
will be spared delays in return.
   The first overnight closure of the westbound 60 is scheduled Friday,
Sept. 27, and will also begin at 10 p.m., then end at 5 a.m. Monday, Sept. 30.
Officials said the westbound closures will continue over the ensuing seven
weekends, ending Nov. 18.
   Closures for 2020 have not been announced.
   Entrance and exit ramps to the closed sections of the 60 will be
inaccessible to traffic. Crews will use the closures to remove and replace
entire slabs of pavement, according to Caltrans.
   The agency is recommending that motorists use Interstate 10 or state
Route 91 during the shutdowns. However, surface streets in Jurupa Valley and
Riverside will also be available.
   In addition to the shutdowns, intermittent and extended lane closures
are planned 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 periodically closed during the Swarm.
   Single lane closures began Monday night in several locations and will
wrap up in November 2021, when the pavement replacement project is slated to
conclude, according to Caltrans.
   Rancho Cucamonga-based McLoughlin Engineering Co. is overseeing the
$134 million project.
   The other part of the 60 Swarm comprises bridge replacements, managed
by Riverside-based Sema Construction Inc.
   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.
   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.
   Alternating east- and westbound closures of the 60 at the site of each
bridge are also planned, but officials were not specific about the timing.
   The $23 million bridge replacement projects are slated to end in the
fall of 2021.
   More information is available via the 60 Swarm hotline: 833-607-9276.