55-Hour Closure Of Badlands East 60 Freeway Begins

SAN GORGONIO PASS AREA, CA — Motorists are reminded that state Route 60 lanes, between Gilman Springs Road and the Interstate 10/SR-60 interchange in the Badlands, will be closed to all eastbound traffic for 55 hours straight this weekend to allow roadwork that's part of the $138.4 million "Route 60 Truck Lanes Project."

All eastbound SR-60 lanes will close from 10 p.m. Friday, January 8, through 5 a.m. Monday, January 11, the Riverside County Transportation Commission announced.

The RCTC, in partnership with Caltrans, is widening a 4.5-mile section of the route from Gilman Springs Road to 1.4 miles west of Jack Rabbit Trail in the Badlands area between Moreno Valley and Beaumont. The project is designed to improve safety and efficiency and to reduce traffic congestion. Click here to view project videos.

Once the project is completed, each side of the SR-60 through the Badlands will have a new truck lane and shoulders will be widened to 12 feet on the outside lane and 11 feet on the inside lane. Some roadway curves will be flattened, and two wildlife crossings, as well as wildlife fencing, will be added, according to the RCTC.

Construction on the project began in 2019 and is expected to wrap up in 2022.