Interstate 210 is a vital route for commuters and travelers. When the final section of the freeway was completed years ago, it was celebrated in a special way by allowing the public to walk, run and bike on the newly constructed sections before it officially opened.
Interstate 210, known as the Foothill Freeway, was planned in the 1940s, commissioned in the mid-1950s, and completed in stages from 1969 to 2007. The name Foothill Freeway is a reference to Foothill Boulevard and the San Gabriel Mountains, which the freeway runs parallel to for most of its length.
I-210 was approved in 1955, and the first segment was constructed and opened near Devils Gate Dam. In the 1990s, Caltrans began extending the freeway east from Glendora to the former Interstate 215/State Route 30 in San Bernardino.
In 1998, a legislative change through California State Assembly Bill (AB) 2388 extended SR 210 East and eliminated SR 30. The last segment of California 210 opened on July 24, 2007, through Rialto and Muscoy.
By 2009, all of Route 30, including surface street alignments, was transferred to CA 210, and CA 30 was fully replaced as a field-signed route. The final link connecting CA 210 East and I-215 South opened to traffic on July 23, 2012. Prior to the final connection, drivers had to take a lengthy detour along Highland Avenue.
To celebrate the opening of these new sections of the Foothill Freeway, two “Play on the Freeway Day” events took place, allowing the public to walk, run and bike on the newly constructed sections of CA 210.
Between 1976 to 1980, an unfinished portion of Interstate 210 was rented by Columbia Pictures for the filming of the television series, CHiPs. Several movies have also been filmed on the 210 freeway, including “Transformers” (Rialto) and “Due Date” (between Fontana and Rialto).
The information in this historical feature was originally part of a video series produced by the Assessor-Recorder-County Clerk’s office.
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