Durfee Avenue closes for ACE grade separation project

Durfee Avenue in Pico Rivera, California, will be closed for the next 27 months starting today as part of the $107.8 million grade separation project being constructed by the San Gabriel Valley Council of Governments (SGVCOG).

Located north of Whittier Boulevard and south of Beverly Boulevard, the grade separation effort is part of the Alameda Corridor-East (ACE) project, a program of 19 roadway-rail grade separations and safety improvements along the high-volume transcontinental ACE freight-rail corridor.

The project calls for constructing a 1,200-foot-long roadway underpass on Durfee Avenue between Beverly Road and Whittier Boulevard under Union Pacific Railroad tracks, as well as retaining walls and a new 95-foot-long rail bridge. The grade separation is aimed at eliminating collisions, train horn noise and delays for emergency responders, SGVCOG officials said in a press release.

Additionally, the project will reduce emissions from idling vehicles waiting for trains to pass and traffic congestion by an estimated 15.3 vehicle-hours of delay each day due to lowered crossing gates, they said.

The railroad crossing is used by 13,600 vehicles per day. The Federal Railroad Administration has recorded nine collisions at the crossings since 1981, resulting in four fatalities.

“Adjacent to a fire station, school and residential neighborhoods, the underpass on Durfee Avenue will create a safer environment for all those who live and travel through the area by providing a safer route for students to nearby schools and eliminate delays and improve critical response times for our emergency responders," said Tim Sandoval, who chairs the council's Capital Projects and Construction Committee.