Students should expect longer commute times till Feb. 27
By Joey Caraway, February 17, 2026
The I-10 westbound freeway on- and off-ramps at Kellogg Drive will experience intermittent closures Monday through Friday between 8 a.m. and 3 p.m. until Feb. 27, according to an email sent out to students and faculty from Parking and Transportation Services.
The freeway ramps will be closed to make way for landscaping, according to the Caltrans database website. Monica Ruvalcaba, the Caltrans public information officer for District Seven, said crews were actively pouring mulch on the ramp and working on all four corners of the Kellogg Drive on- and off-ramps.
“These closures are part of maintenance and beautification work Caltrans is carrying out in the area in collaboration with our local partners, the City of Pomona and Cal Poly Pomona,” Ruvalcaba said in an email statement. “During this period, crews are performing routine maintenance, including debris and litter cleanup, mulch operations and other upkeep tasks to maintain and improve the corridor.”
The closure started Feb. 4 around 9 a.m. CPP sent out an email notifying students of the closure five hours after it occurred, causing frustrations.
“The emails would be helpful,” said mechanical engineering student Finn Janik. “I got it at the end of the day, and at that point it’s not very helpful.”
Information about freeway closures can also be found on the Caltrans database website or on its mobile app, Caltrans Quickmap. This closure was listed the morning of Feb. 4.
“The most reliable place for information would be the Caltrans Quickmap,” Ruvalcaba said. “When you drop the pin in the area that you’re located, it’ll tell you live results of what’s happening.”
The Caltrans website database also allows users to view up-to-date reports of lane closures among the 10 different districts. CPP is part of District Seven. Users can search specific routes, dates and time periods with options to search by closure type, closure status, when the status changed and which facility is affected, such as in carpool, mainline, connector, on-ramp and off-ramp.
Students reported being late to classes because of the sudden closure and slow response from the school. Feb. 4 was also the first day of classes for many students following the end of the add/drop period Jan. 30.
“It was my first time going to this class,” communication student Ally Hurtado said. “I take my normal route and then I get to the exit, and it’s closed. It adds an extra 25 minutes.”
During a previous closure, CPP highlighted several alternative routes for exiting the westbound I‑10 on its website. One option was to exit at Fairplex Drive, turn right onto West Holt Avenue, continue to Valley Boulevard, and then turn right onto Kellogg Drive.
Some also used the exit at Via Verde Drive, made a U-turn to reenter I-10 eastbound and then exited at Kellogg Drive to avoid the closure.
Despite these alternatives, students are worried this closure will cause excessive congestion at other freeway exits, causing even more delays.
“Just as long as professors are pretty gracious within the next couple weeks,” said computer science student Gisselle Flores. “Not only is it that they’re closing a route, but it’s going to be really concentrated in other exits.”
As these closures continue throughout February, Ruvalcaba encourages students and faculty to monitor Caltrans updates and plan for longer commute times.
“When we send out notices, we always try to make our efforts to let the community know in advance because we understand that sometimes traffic impacts and delays can throw off some people’s schedules,” Ruvalcaba said. “We do public notices not only through surrounding areas, but also through our social media channels, that includes Instagram, Facebook, Threads and X.”
Feature image courtesy of Alexander Franco
