Saturday, July 26, 2025

Metro Announces Sept. 19 Opening for Pomona A Line Extension, Expanding Access for Pasadena-Area Riders

STAFF REPORT

Metro announced Thursday that its 9.1-mile light rail extension from Glendora to Pomona will officially open on Friday, Sept. 19, expanding regional transit access to Pasadena-area communities and the broader San Gabriel Valley.

The $1.5 billion expansion of the A Line—formerly known as the Gold Line—adds new stations in Glendora, San Dimas, La Verne and Pomona.

The extension will allow travelers in Pasadena and neighboring cities to reach a range of destinations by rail, including major colleges and universities, hospitals, parks, museums, medical centers, and retail and entertainment venues.

The new Pomona North Station will also connect riders to Metrolink’s San Bernardino Line, offering a new gateway to the Inland Empire. Access to the Pomona Fairplex, which will host Olympic cricket events in 2028—the first such inclusion since 1900—will be available via the extended route.

“By way of coming attractions, we’re excited to soon be opening the Foothill A Line Extension to Pomona,” Metro Board Chair and Whittier Councilmember Fernando Dutra said at Thursday’s Board of Directors meeting.

Dutra reported that Pomona Mayor and Metro Board Director Tim Sandoval and city crews are working to ensure safety along the route.

Last week, Metro’s Emergency Management Department and Division 24 Rail Instruction conducted critical state training sessions with a specialized team of 12 personnel from police departments in La Verne, Glendora, Monrovia, Sierra Madre and Claremont. The exercises included tactical movement on rail cars, platform entry and exit drills, and operational overviews.

“This will help us better respond to emergencies, not just at Metro, but also in the region,” Dutra said.

Metro noted the extension is part of its Twenty-Eight by ’28 initiative, which aims to expand public transit infrastructure in Los Angeles County ahead of the 2028 Olympic and Paralympic Games.

The Foothill Gold Line Construction Authority, a state-created agency, turned the completed extension over to Metro in January for final testing. Metro said the project met its budget and schedule benchmarks.

Construction was led by Kiewit-Parsons, a Joint Venture (KPJV), under a $906.5 million contract awarded in 2020. KPJV built four new stations, relocated freight tracks, constructed 19 bridges spanning major city streets in Glendora and San Dimas, installed 21 at-grade street crossings, and added 10 miles of decorative sound walls, retaining walls and fencing.

Measure M, a half-cent sales tax approved by Los Angeles County voters in 2016, provided primary funding. Metro also used $100 million from Measure R, a separate transportation tax passed in 2008, to fund the Pasadena-to-Azusa segment. In 2018, the California State Transportation Agency’s Transit and Intercity Rail Capital Program awarded nearly $300 million to support the Pomona extension.

Metro officials have also discussed plans to further extend the A Line from Pomona to Montclair. The A Line currently serves 44 stations from Azusa to Long Beach, passing through Pasadena, downtown Los Angeles and points south.