Foothill Gold Line E-News

September 2023

Glendora to Pomona Project Now 78% Complete; Four New Stations, Parking and Public Art Underway; Light Rail Power and Train Control Systems; Project Walls; Ongoing Crossing and Road Work; Pomona to Montclair Update

The Glendora to Pomona project is now 78% completed. Crews continue to make significant progress completing the remaining major construction activities, including work on the four new stations, station parking facilities, light rail power and train control systems, as well as the project walls and crossings. In addition, each station’s dedicated artist/artist team is busy creating their planned station artwork, with some art pieces already completed and installed at the stations.

The project remains on budget and on schedule for an early-January 2025 completion. At that time, it will be turned over to Metro for training and pre-revenue service (Metro determines when passenger service begins).

Additionally, the Construction Authority is starting work to prepare the Foothill Gold Line’s final two-station project segment from Pomona to Montclair for a future design-build procurement. The Construction Authority is hopeful that Metro will fund the final construction segment with state funding that was approved this past July through the state budget process. Metro is expected to receive more than $1 billion over the next two years for transit capital projects. The state guidelines for use of the funds are under development now, and more will be known in the months ahead. Stay tuned.

Read on to learn more about current construction activities.

Four New Stations – 60% Complete

Crews are now 60% complete with the four new light rail stations. With the station platform decks completed or almost  completed at all four stations, work is underway on the canopies, communications and power systems. This past month, construction also started on the first of the four new parking facilities; and behind the scenes, the station artists continue to fabricate their public artworks, with some art pieces already completed. All four stations will be center platform stations, with a track on each side – one for westbound trains, and one for eastbound trains.

Glendora Station

Photo: Crews installing metal roof for future Glendora station

With the canopy structures at the future Glendora station installed, crews are now installing the metal roof atop the boarding canopy (see photo above) and decorative glass panels atop the ticket vending machine (TVM) canopies to the west and east.

Photos: Crews installing decorative glass panels atop east TVM canopy at future Glendora station

As seen in the photos above, the patterns on the glass panels on top of the TVM canopies are citrus-inspired and designed by Alignment artist Christie Beniston, who also designed the patterns seen throughout the project’s walls and bridges. These decorative glass panels will be installed at all of the TVM canopies for all four stations.

Photos: Crews installing art columns at future Glendora station platform

Crews have also installed four of the eight art column structures at the Glendora station – the four that are on the station platform itself (see photos above). The art columns were designed by Glendora station artist Michael Hillman (pictured left in second photo above), who is a Glendora resident and art professor at Citrus College, and inspired by columns found at the Gran Teatre del Liceu Opera House in Barcelona, Spain. Four more art columns will be installed later near the adjacent street crossings. In the future, Michael and his team of installers will be adding hundreds of small glass tiles onto each art column to create Glendora-themed mosaics. The initial four column structures needed to be installed now, ahead of the tiles being placed, to allow the overhead catenary system (OCS) wires to be installed through the station area.

Photo: Site of future Glendora station parking facility

Just south of the station platform, crews this week have begun clearing the site of the future station parking facility ahead of its demolition and construction (see photo above). The site has been utilized for many months as a lay-down area for project materials. The future surface parking lot will feature 302 parking spaces.

San Dimas Station

Photo: Crews preparing canopy frames at future San Dimas station for painting

With the canopy frames fully installed at the future San Dimas station, crews are currently in the process of painting the frames to their final color. As seen in the photo above, crews are first applying primer to the canopy frames before painting.

Photo: Crews clearing site of future San Dimas station parking facility

Across the street and west of the future station, crews have begun demolishing and clearing the former San Dimas Park & Ride lot, which will serve as the site of the San Dimas station parking facility (see photo above). The future surface parking lot will feature 289 parking spaces.

Photos: (top and middle) Completed art tiles for future San Dimas station; (bottom) Construction Authority and KPJV staff with San Dimas station artists Eugene and Anne Olsen Daub holding set of completed art tiles

Over the past few months, the San Dimas station artist team of Eugene Daub and Anne Olsen Daub have been working with Pasadena Craftsman Tile to complete the final glazing and color work for their bas-relief ceramic tiles that will be installed on the canopy column bases along the station platform in the future. Recently, Eugene and Anne, along with Construction Authority and KPJV staff, returned to the studio of Pasadena Craftsman Tile to review the final set of tiles. The founder of Pasadena Craftsman Tile is artist Cha-Rie Tang, who was the station artist for the Monrovia station. As seen in the photos above, the tiles will feature wildlife and landscapes found in San Dimas.

La Verne Station

Photos: (top) Future La Verne station; (bottom) Crews clearing site of future La Verne station parking facility ahead of construction

Adjacent to the future La Verne station, crews have been preparing the future station parking site for construction. For many months, the site was used as a lay-down area for the project. As seen in the photo above, the site has recently been cleared and will soon be the first of the four future parking facilities to begin construction. The future parking lot is located just south of the station platform, and will feature 299 parking spaces.

Pomona Station

Photo: Future Pomona station under construction

At the future Pomona station, crews continue to focus on constructing the entrance ramps west and east of the station platform that will provide easy connections for riders arriving from the nearby Metrolink station, the future station parking facility and those arriving from nearby Garey Ave.

Photos: Concrete art wall at east entrance of future Pomona station

The entrance to the east ramp is where a concrete art wall with the words “The Power of Pomona is People” (see photo above) is now located. This art wall was designed by Pomona station artist Stephen Farley, and is part of his planned artwork at the station to honor Pomona residents, past and present, in a “Hall of Gratitude” showcase that will permanently feature 56 inspirational Pomonans (selected out of over a hundred nominations). Their likeness will be displayed on 2 ft. by 2 ft. glazed ceramic tiles, alongside a power statement expressing how they made a difference in people’s lives. To learn more, visit the Pomona People Power website by clicking here.

To learn more about the plans for the future stations, see these fact sheets: Glendora, San Dimas, La Verne, and Pomona.

Light Rail Power and Train Control Systems – 65% Complete

With major work on the new light rail track system completed, crews continue to focus on the other elements that make up the light rail system, including the power and train control systems (both are about 65% complete). Each is being constructed by separate, specialized crews that coordinate extensively with one another.

Photos: Crews installing overhead wires across the OCS poles in Glendora

Most of the 350 overhead catenary system (OCS) poles planned for the project have now been installed. Each pole is placed onto foundations built about every 200 feet along the 9.1-mile corridor, and weighs about 1,200 pounds.

Along stretches where the OCS poles are fully installed, crews continue to install the overhead wires across the poles, as seen in the photos above. The overhead wires will provide power to the light rail trains when the train’s pantograph comes into contact with the wire (light rail trains run on electricity).

Photos: Crews installing underground conduit and cables for light rail system in Glendora (top) and San Dimas (bottom)

Crews also continue to install miles of underground cables and ducts for the power, train control and communications systems, as well as innerduct that allow the ductbank to be subdivided for multiple pathways for cable pulls in the future (see top photo above).

Sound Walls, Retaining Walls and Fencing – 89% Complete

Photo: Crews conducting finishing work on the sound and retaining walls of the Bonita Ave./Cataract Ave. light rail bridge in San Dimas

Crews are nearing completion on the installation of the ten miles of sound walls and retaining walls planned for the project. At each of the walls, crews are coming back and applying finishes to the walls, as seen in the photo above. As you can also see, the sound walls and retaining walls feature custom patterns designed by the project’s Alignment artist, Christie Beniston.

Ongoing Bridge, Crossing and Road Work

Throughout the project, crews are returning to various grade crossings to complete remaining work on the roadways, sidewalks and safety improvements. Crews recently utilized a one-day full closure of the D St. crossing in La Verne to complete final paving and striping on Arrow Hwy., and will carry out the same work at other crossings in the near future.

In Glendora, crews continue to implement intermittent lane closures at the Foothill Blvd./Grand Ave. intersection (click here for notice) and on Route 66 between Hunters Trail and Compromise Line Rd. (click here for notice) through the end of the year to complete remaining work on the roadway, sidewalks and bridges.

Photo: Crews constructing sidewalk at Bonita Ave./Cataract Ave. intersection in San Dimas

In San Dimas, crews are currently rebuilding the Gladstone Shopping Center’s eastern driveway near the Gladstone St. crossing (click here for notice), rebuilding the center median along San Dimas Ave. north of Arrow Hwy. (click here for notice) and constructing new sidewalks at the intersection of Bonita Ave./Cataract Ave. (see photo above).

Photos: Crews installing decorative ornamental lights on east approach of Bonita Ave./Cataract Ave. light rail bridge in San Dimas

In addition, along the approaches and new light rail bridge at the Bonita Ave./Cataract Ave. intersection in San Dimas, crews are currently installing decorative lights that match the ones installed along Bonita Ave. (see photo above).

For an overview of the entire project alignment status from Glendora to Pomona, click here or below to watch a video highlighting the project’s progress.

Pomona to Montclair Segment Status

The Construction Authority is currently seeking $798 million to complete the 3.2-mile project segment from Pomona to Montclair that includes the final two stations of the 25-station Foothill Gold Line program. The agency is hopeful that the funding needed to build the final two stations will come as a result of the recently approved 2023-’24 state budget, which included more than $4 billion for transit capital spending statewide to be allocated over the next two fiscal years. The funding, which provided flexibility to allow some transit operations use, is expected to be distributed by population. That would mean that LA County would receive at least $1 billion from these new state funds.

As you may recall, this past March the Metro board unanimously made completing the Foothill Gold Line to Claremont and Montclair the county’s number one priority for new state transit capital funding opportunities. The state guidelines for use of the funds are under development now, and more will be known in the weeks ahead.

In anticipation of this future funding, the Construction Authority has begun work to prepare the final segment for a design-build procurement. Once funding is secured, the shovel-ready Pomona to Montclair segment will take five years to complete.

Thank you for your continued interest in the Foothill Gold Line. We appreciate your patience as we build this important regional project.

Lisa Levy Buch, Chief Communications and Strategic Development Officer and the Public Affairs Team