California Route 210: Rancho Cucamonga to San Dimas

Take a smooth suburban cruise across the eastern edge of Los Angeles County as we follow California State Route 210 for 19 miles from Rancho Cucamonga to San Dimas. This leg of the Foothill Freeway traces the northern fringe of the Inland Empire, where development presses up against the San Gabriel Mountains. From the wide open lanes of Rancho Cucamonga to the historical charm of Route 66 and the cinematic legacy of San Dimas, this drive offers a quietly captivating slice of Southern California freeway travel.

We begin our journey in Rancho Cucamonga, one of the Inland Empire’s more recently urbanized communities, known for its vineyards, outlet shopping, and the towering peaks of the nearby San Gabriels. Entering CA-210 westbound, the freeway is wide and modern—designed with future capacity in mind. The surrounding landscape features sprawling suburban neighborhoods, retail centers, and industrial complexes interspersed with pockets of citrus groves and flood control basins. As we cross the San Antonio Creek Channel, we also cross a county line: leaving San Bernardino County behind and entering Los Angeles County via the city of Claremont. This charming college town is known for the Claremont Colleges and tree-lined streets—though none of that is directly visible from the freeway, it’s worth a detour if time allows.

Just beyond Claremont, the freeway crosses the interchange with California Highway 66, known locally as Foothill Boulevard—one of the many roads that once bore the path of Historic Route 66. Although CA-210 is far more modern in design than the Mother Road it shadows, its alignment through foothill communities like La Verne and San Dimas keeps it in close cultural proximity to the legendary highway. Soon, we arrive in San Dimas, a town that fans of Bill & Ted’s Excellent Adventure will instantly recognize. While we don’t see a phone booth or time-traveling duo on this ride, the real-life San Dimas offers a mix of small-town charm and suburban sprawl, complete with ranch-style homes, parks, and local eateries tucked away just south of the freeway.

We end our drive just as California 210 reaches its transition into Interstate 210 at the interchange with CA-57, also known as the Orange Freeway. From here, the route continues west toward Pasadena and eventually connects with other major freeways leading into Los Angeles proper. But our segment concludes here in San Dimas, where pop culture meets freeway infrastructure, and the foothills continue to roll gently along to the south.