The final construction contract has been awarded for the $1.9 billion Alameda Corridor East grade-separation program in the San Gabriel Valley that has spanned 20 years and counting.
Last month, the San Gabriel Valley Council of Governments awarded a $69.8 million construction contract for the Turnbull Canyon Road grade-separation project in the City of Industry and unincorporated community of Hacienda Heights. This 19th and final contract under the Alameda Corridor East program has gone to OHLA USA Inc., a subsidiary of Madrid, Spain-based infrastructure firm OHLA Group.
Construction is slated to begin in the spring and should wrap up in mid-2028, just in time for the Summer Olympic and Paralympic Games.
The aim of all these grade-separation projects along the Alameda Corridor East rail freight line is to improve safety, speed rail transit and reduce vehicular-traffic interruptions. Several of the grade crossings that have been – or are about to be – separated ranked among the most dangerous in the state in terms of collisions. And, as the length of freight trains has increased, so have the delays at the various grade crossings.
Construction work started on the first Alameda Corridor East grade-separation project – along Nogales Street straddling the cities of West Covina and City of Industry – in summer 2003. Since then, 16 of the grade-separation projects have been completed. One project is now under construction and the remaining two are slated to begin construction in the first half of next year.
“The Alameda Corridor East project has been a transformative program for the San Gabriel Valley that has delivered significant safety, mobility and air quality benefits throughout the region,” said Tim Hepburn, mayor of La Verne and president of the San Gabriel Valley Council of Governments. “Our 19 grade-separation projects have meant huge investments to improve the critical transportation infrastructure in our local communities to ensure the efficient movement of goods that greatly contribute to Southern California’s economic vitality and competitiveness.”
The $98 million Turnbull Canyon Road project calls for construction of a two-lane roadway overpass to carry vehicles over the railroad tracks and a separate pedestrian bridge for pedestrians and bicyclists. Funding is coming from a variety of local and state sources, including the state’s Senate Bill 1 program enacted in 2017 and a pair of local ballot measures. Omaha, Nebraska-based Union Pacific Railroad, which operates the freight rail line, also contributed.
According to figures cited by the San Gabriel Valley Council of Governments, Turnbull Canyon Road is traversed by about 19,000 vehicles and 59 trains each day. The grade crossing has seen 132 collisions since 2010, ranking it as the 30th most hazardous freight rail crossing in Los Angeles County out of 1,006 grade crossings. The collisions have resulted in two fatalities and 98 injuries.
According to the council, the grade separation will eliminate crossing collisions and reduce delays for motorists and emergency responders, reduce greenhouse gas emissions from idling vehicles, and provide significant safety, mobility and air quality benefits to the local communities adjacent to the freight corridor. It will also improve the region’s multimodal freight transportation system.
“The Turnbull Canyon grade-separation project is much needed and will greatly enhance safety and traffic flow, and significantly reduce vehicle emissions for the residents and business community throughout the San Gabriel Valley,” Hepburn, the La Verne mayor, said in the contract award announcement. “This critical investment in our infrastructure reflects the (council’s) unwavering commitment to improving the quality of life for the region.”
