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Southwest Passage/Interstates 8, 10, and 210 (Corridor 34)
Routing
Corridor 34 includes both the Alameda Corridor East and Southwest Passage in Southern California. The Alameda Corridor East is generally described as 52.8 miles from east Los Angeles (terminus of Alameda Corridor) through the San Gabriel Valley terminating at Colton Junction in San Bernardino County. The Southwest Passage shall follow Interstate 10 from San Bernardino to the Arizona State line. Interstate 8 was formerly included in this corridor until it was eliminated when SAFETEA-LU was passed in 2005. In addition, this corridor includes the freeway project that will convert California 210 (former California 30) into an extension of Interstate 210. The Alameda Corridor East project, from East Los Angeles east to Colton is estimated to cost $2.5 billion as of 2005.
In the Spring 1999 AASHTO Quarterly, the writers report that the passage of TEA-21 is an important component of the major transportation improvement renaissance taking place in California.
TEA 21 is expected to generate an extra $3.3 billion for the California Department of Transportation and its regional and local partners to use on highway, rail and transit improvements across the Golden State. The Intermodal Surface Transportation Efficiency Act of 1991 (ISTEA) generated some $9.7 billion for California compared with the nearly $13 billion that will be returned to California under TEA-21. The TEA-21 along with state and local funding sources will finance California's ambitious six-year program of transportation improvements. Those projects will enhance safety, improve mobility and guarantee that California's transportation will be able to meet the needs of the state and nation for years to come. Those transportation improvements will touch every corner of the Golden State.
Some of the more noteworthy projects include the Interstate 210 extension in Los Angeles and San Bernardino and the Alameda Corridor between the Ports of Los Angeles and Long Beach. The I-210 project would fill a gap on former California 30 between San Dimas and Alta Loma or, more importantly, between Los Angeles and the growing inland empire of San Bernardino and Riverside counties. Planning for the project began in the 1940s. At the same time, Caltrans will continue in its funding and oversight role of the Alameda Corridor, a 20-mile rail freight line that connects the Ports of Los Angeles and Long Beach to the transcontinental network in Los Angeles. The work is expected to improve mobility, traffic congestion, and air and noise pollution in what is considered to be the third largest port complex in the world.
Interstate 210
Interstate 210 currently follows the Foothill Freeway from Interstate 5 near San Fernando east to Interstate 10 near San Dimas at the junction with State Route 57. With the passage of a recent California State Highway bill, the definition of California 210 was changed to include all of California 210 (former California 30) between San Dimas and Redlands. The short section of Interstate 210 between the California 30/210 junction and Interstate 10 was made into a northern extension of California 57. Although this extension of California 210 has not yet been accepted by AASHTO into the Interstate Highway System, it is a likely addition to the system once the freeway has been constructed between San Dimas and San Bernardino.
The section of California 210 to be completed to connect the existing Interstate 210 freeway and the existing California 30 freeway near San Bernardino was just over 28 miles. With the recent opening of a section between La Verne and Fontana, the gap is starting to close. Construction on the 22-mile segment between La Verne and Fontana (near Junction Interstate 15) was initiated in late 1997, and the a section of that new freeway was opened to traffic in September 2001. Project completion for this 22-mile stretch is expected in 2002, while the construction and completion of the remaining segment of California 210 between Fontana and Junction Interstate 215 is planned after 2002.
Additional information may be obtained from the Caltrans District 7 Route 210 Fact Sheet.
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