Pepper Avenue Extension to SR-210 Interchange

The Pepper Avenue Extension completed a major arterial between Interstate 210, and the east side of Rialto.  The extension is from Pepper Avenue, north of Winchester Avenue to the Interstate 210 and ends at Highland Avenue.  This opened a new transportation corridor along the eastern side of the City which was previously limited in access to the freeway system.  Residents on the east side of Rialto and the west side of San Bernardino would need to access a freeway through a circuitous route to either the northern or southern ends of the city, a route which would require an additional five to ten miles of driving.  The extension creates a new transit corridor while allowing a more efficient route that accesses the freeway system.  In addition, it alleviated traffic congestion associated with regional and local trips, and promotes commerce in connecting residential areas to the south.  A study conducted through the City’s General Plan estimated $1M in new sales and property taxes from commercial and industrial development will be generated from this improvement project.     Unique to the Project is the fact that the northern terminus of the project was located in an historic alluvial flood plain through an area known as the Bench, which was also considered to be part of wildlife corridor along the ephemeral Lytle Creek.  The route of the extension traversed areas of sensitive habitat, including the San Bernardino Kangaroo Rat.  Design elements within the project addressed the sensitive habitat area, including installation of wildlife pass through at the area transitioning from the higher elevation Bench area to the lower alluvial plain.  This project is an example of major transportation routes designed to allow the coexistence of both wildlife and improved transportation within the same zone.  In addition, it also improves the efficiency of access to Interstate 210. The project reduces the amount of stop and go travel previously needed to reach the existing freeways along either the north or south edges of Rialto, therefore positively contributing to the reduction of fuel consumption and associated greenhouse gas emissions in the community.   The project is complete and sustainable. Its features are to meet the needs of the future circulation routes within the City of Rialto, while also providing for improved economic access of a lower income, disadvantaged community.  The project has been incorporated into the City’s roadway structure and included low maintenance, drought tolerant landscaping, storm-water BMPs which capture and treat pollutants generated by the transportation routing, and high quality infrastructure with an expected service life of 50 years.   The $5.5M project required interagency cooperation between the City, Colton, San Bernardino County, SANBAG and CalTrans.  The agreement with SANBAG is the City of Rialto will build the Pepper Avenue Extension; and in turn, SANBAG will construct the Interstate 210 interchange in 2016.