By Bridgette Estrada, September 15, 2026
The city of Pomona began construction on Orange Grove Avenue between Garey Avenue and White Avenue Sept. 8 as part of its Complete Streets and Quick-Build projects.
Currently, there are four lanes between Garey Avenue and White Avenue, with two lanes in each direction. Traveling westbound on Orange Grove Avenue, the roadway goes from two lanes to one lane in each direction after crossing White Avenue.
The Complete Streets Project provides the broader framework for creating safer streets throughout Pomona through updated street designs and zoning regulations, while the Quick-Build Project allows the city to temporarily test proposed changes.
The temporary trial will be studied for six months before the city decides whether to make the changes permanent. The decision will be based on the trial’s results and community feedback.
According to Max Pastore, an associate planner for the city of Pomona, this project was launched to “proactively redesign” the streets in Pomona for safety purposes while simultaneously meeting the proposed standards to ensure what is permissible on private land aligned with how the streets are designed.
“Historically the ways that Southern California has designed its streets have been more geared toward car movement and speed,” Pastore said.
Pastore said deciding which streets to prioritize includes factors like safety, poor pavement conditions and areas where utilities need to be replaced. Pastore said the intersection of Orange Grove and White Avenues is a high-priority area because of the number of crashes that occur there. He said one contributing factor is drivers speeding toward White Avenue to reach the two lanes that follow.
Pastore said the reduction in lanes will slow down traffic but is expected to create a safer roadway, ultimately reducing the number of crashes. Pastore also said the proposal will add more protected bike-lane space while retaining existing parking, with the possibility of more on-street parking as well.
In addition to community feedback, the city of Pomona uses crash data to identify roadway safety concerns.
Pomona’s Safety Action Plan considers collision history, along with equity and community input, when prioritizing proposed safety improvements, according to the city’s official website.
In addition to addressing roadway safety, the Complete Streets Project is intended to align Pomona’s street designs with future development allowed under the city’s zoning regulations.
Pomona was assigned a Regional Housing Needs Allocation of 10,558 housing units for the 2021-29 planning period, requiring the city to plan for its share of current and future regional housing needs, according to the city of Pomona.
During the planning period, the city must ensure its zoning and available sites provide sufficient capacity to accommodate its assigned share of projected housing needs.
According to the city’s public information, it has also identified potential or underused commercial properties and sites that are not developed to their maximum permitted capacity as potential locations for future residential development.
Jesus Campos, a resident since 1989, questioned whether there is enough evidence to support the changes and doubted they will have a positive impact on the community.
“The people that are trying to make a decision for Orange Grove, have the concrete evidence of why they’re doing what they’re doing,” Campos said. “It’s ambiguous. On the contrary, instead of having two lanes, we should have four lanes.”
Candelaria Torres, a lifelong Pomona resident, said she thinks the changes happening on the street are for a good cause, especially at the intersection of Orange Grove and White Avenue.
“One time this lady was going to hit the post because she was rushing to get into that lane,” Torres said. “She swerved. It was a safety hazard. It really was. I believe that, yes, traffic is going to slow down, but it’s for safety purposes.”
The lane reduction will remain in place for six months while the city evaluates the project’s effects on traffic safety and gathers community feedback. At the end of the trial, the city will determine whether to make the changes permanent.
