Railway Project Forces Closure of Traffic Artery
Jul. 28–WEST COVINA — A portion of Nogales Street will be closed for one month beginning Friday, leaving officials from the Alameda Corridor-East Construction Authority in a race against time.
ACE officials said closing the road near the borders of West Covina, Industry and La Puente will cut construction time in half. They said they hope to have it reopened before school starts in September.
“We purposely chose this time frame so the streets would be open by the time Nogales High School is back in session,” said Rick Richmond, ACE chief executive officer. “There are other schools around the area, but Nogales is the closest and the largest so we want this done before their students are back in school.’
Summer school at Nogales High, home to about 2,400 students, lets out today, and students will begin the regular school year Sept. 6.
School officials said they are pleased with the ACE plan.
“We are happy about the applied efforts and we know the outcome will be fabulous,” said Karen Coggins, assistant principal. “People just need to be patient and support the efforts being made.’
Nogales Street at Valley Boulevard, between Northam Street and San Jose Avenue, will be closed to through traffic.
Construction crews will be working seven days a week, 24 hours a day in nonresidential areas and until 10 p.m. in residential areas, officials said.
Upon completion, Nogales Street will be lowered about 20 feet. Bridges will carry the trains over the roadway.
The ACE project was created to relieve traffic congestion and improve safety by separating train and automobile traffic near rail crossings. Rail traffic is expected to increase in the area as more goods are shipped eastward from the ports of Los Angeles and Long Beach.
The $46.1 million Nogales portion of the ACE project began in summer 2003 and is part of the $910 million overall construction plan, which ACE officials say is helping to ensure the San Gabriel Valley’s economic vitality.
Although people will be able to get to businesses at Nogales and Valley Boulevard, some business owners are still unhappy.
“Semis block our entrance driveways as it is,” said Dr. Rodney Collins, owner of Walnut Valley Animal Hospital. “It is going to be a bigger mess than it already is. Increased traffic congestion and detour nightmares, we’ll have to live with this, and they just say, ‘Too bad; we’re doing it.’ “
While Nogales Street is scheduled to reopen Aug. 28, the project is not expected to be completed until this winter after more construction and landscaping are done.
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