Historic Route 66, better known as The Mother Road by adoring fans and historians, is a road running through the City of Fontana. In Fontana, the road is actually Foothill Boulevard on maps and street signs. One of the “gateways” to the City of Fontana is on Foothill Boulevard/Historic Route 66 at East Avenue.

Given its historic nature and its central location to the City, it is not a surprise that Foothill Boulevard is heavily traveled. In order to help improve traffic flow and safety, the City is now working to complete improvements between East and Cottonwood Avenues. By separating the east and west traffic, the City anticipates seeing an improvement in traffic safety and flow.

Paving of Foothill Boulevard is one of the phases of this project.

“It is the vision of the City Council to continue to invest in street improvements in all parts of the City, and the improvements to Foothill Boulevard is something the Council sees as not only enhancing the aesthetics of the community, but also as encouraging new development and serving as a catalyst for other improvements,” said Mayor Mark Nuaimi.

Construction began on the Foothill Boulevard project on September 16, 2009. Before the major portion of the median work can be completed, the widening of Foothill Boulevard at East Avenue must first be finished in order to provide motorists with enough room to travel through the construction zone and allow the construction crews enough room to do their work.

The project will add shrubs and landscaping to the median between Cherry and East Avenues, and between Citrus and Oleander Avenues.
In addition, the project will widen Foothill Boulevard from two to three lanes on the south side.

In particular, the raised medians will dramatically change these roadways by providing for:

Improved Traffic Safety

Completed raised median on Foothill Blvd.

• Limit or prohibit multiple left turns and U-turn movements to reduce vehicle conflicts and the potential for collisions
• Discourage illegal movements such as mid-block crossing by pedestrians

Improved Traffic Flow

• Improve traffic flow and reduce traffic congestion particularly during peak hours
• Calming effect on drivers, since the driver has fewer distractions and fewer potential conflicts

Improved Aesthetics

• Visual amenities which are attractive to motorists and pedestrians
• Encourage new development

The City of Fontana Engineering Department received the Civil Engineering Improvement of The Year Award from the American Society of Civil Engineers (ASCE) for the design of this noteworthy project. “We continue to strive for excellence when designing these types of projects as our goal is to provide our residents with the safest path on which to travel with each new improvement,” said Ricardo Sandoval, director of engineering.

The City slated more than $2.9 million to bring this enhancement to the Fontana community. The construction is being completed by Mega Way Enterprises and is expected to be complete by March of 2010.

Please remember to use alternate routes as there may be lane closures during working hours due to the construction operations in this area. Please check the City Web site at http://www.fontana.org/main/traffic_advisories.htm for the latest road closures and traffic advisories.

For more information on this project, please contact Richard Oaxaca, assistant engineer at (909) 350-7661 or the Department of Engineering at (909) 350-7610.