Politics & Government

Carmageddon 2011 Has Arrived, Are You Prepared?

The highly publicized Carmageddon weekend has arrived. Here's what to expect and what areas to avoid.

After months of planning and a weeks-long media and publicity blitz, the so-called “Carmageddon'' weekend began Friday night, when the San Diego (405) Freeway closed through the Sepulveda Pass -- a closure that officials say will likely trickle down, affecting all Southland freeways with unbearable gridlock.

The Closure

The highway will be shutdown for 53 hours while the southern half of the Mulholland Bridge spanning the 405 near the Skirball Cultural Center in demolished. The demolition is part of a $1.2 billion widening project to add carpool lanes and make other improvements to the 405. The entire project is scheduled to be completed in 2013.

Find out what's happening in Belmont Shore-Napleswith free, real-time updates from Patch.

 The northbound freeway will be closed for 10 miles between the Santa Monica (10) and Ventura (101) freeways. The southbound freeway will be closed for four miles from the 101 Freeway to Getty Center Drive. The freeway and all ramps are expected to be reopened to traffic by 6 a.m. Monday.

The Impact

Find out what's happening in Belmont Shore-Napleswith free, real-time updates from Patch.

With roughly 500,000 people typically using the freeway on that stretch on weekends, local officials have been urging residents for weeks to avoid the area this weekend and prevent congestion stretching from West Los Angeles to the Valley. Traffic to Long Beach from Orange County was free of slowdowns Saturday.

Although Naples and Belmont Shore are several miles away from the closure, officials say that the impact of shutdown will undoubtedly be felt across the Southland with a crippling commute across all freeways, including the local 710, 91 and 605 freeways.

Some experts believe traffic jams could cause motorists to travel one mile in three hours.

 “In general, all the freeway routes in Los Angeles will experience much higher volume and on some selected routes a great deal more congestion during this weekend,'' according to Doug Failing, executive director of Highway Projects for the Metropolitan Transportation Authority. “The routes close to the central business district will experience the most congestion since these are the closest routes to the project area.”

Falling urged Angelenos as a whole to work together by staying home and shopping locally to keep the region moving through the weekend. 

Travel Alternatives

Metro is also trying to ease traffic by offering free fares on the Red and Purple light rail lines this weekend, as well as on the Orange Line busway through the San Fernando Valley and 26 other bus lines on major routes in the area.

A complete list of the free and expanded transit routes during the construction is atwww.metro.net/I-405.

Metrolink, meanwhile, will be offering $10 unlimited weekend ride passes. JetBlue Airways also offered $4 one-way flights between Long Beach and Burbank on Saturday. The flights -- two in each direction -- . Amtrak is also trying to ease the commute with half-price fares to passengers traveling between Union Station and Bob Hope Airport in Burbank. With the discount, the fare between downtown Los Angeles and Burbank on the Pacific Surfliner train will be $3 each way. The fare for children aged 2 to 15 who are accompanied by an adult will be $1.50 each way.

Turning Carmaggedon Into an Opportunity

Los Angeles Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa urged area residents to turn this weekend into a unique opportunity in a message on Metro's website.

“It's an opportunity to explore your neighborhood, to support your local small business and to discover public transportation,'' Villaraigosa said. “... So this weekend, please, ride a bike, take a walk, but whatever you do, stay off the roads.''

Belmont Shore residents are encouraged to take a look at Patch’s weekly  for great ideas and events that can be enjoyed in the area without having to travel anywhere near the “Carmaggedon” zone.

The End of the Tunnel

The freeway and all ramps are slated to re-open by 6 a.m. in time for the Monday morning commute. If the freeway is not open on time, the contractor faces fines of $6,000 for every 10 minutes of delay.

Officials noted that demolishing the southern portion of the bridge will not be carried out with explosions and dynamite, but rather persistent jack-hammering. The north half of the bridge will be demolished sometime next year, meaning another lengthy freeway closure will be planned in the future.

* City News Service contributed to this report.


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