Freeway closures. Bridge demolition. Mass hysteria—the Carmageddon cometh.
While it sounds like a new Michael Bay film, thankfully it isn’t. Lord knows one can only take so many explosions, plot holes and crappy dialog in a given summer. Instead, what the much ballyhooed Carmageddon refers to is the Interstate 405 closure in Southern California to make way for a carpool lane.
Ironically, the long-term easement of automotive congestion that the 405 is infamous for comes at the short-term cost of a complete, all-lane freeway closure for a weekend. Or, from what the media is portraying it as, the end of the world. The “carpocalypse.”
From the hype, one would think the entire 405 will be closed. Not true. The closure affects only 10 miles of it, albeit a highly trafficked stretch spanning from Interstate 10 to U.S. 101, a patch of highway connecting coastal Santa Monica to the San Fernando Valley.
So will it affect traffic? Sure. Is it the end of the world? Far from it. It’s just a major inconvenience. Los Angeles traffic tends to be horrible on Saturday anyway. But for those of you concerned with the pending “cartastrophe,” we’ve come up with five tips that may be helpful.
- Use alternate routes. Not Sepulveda, PCH or canyon roads, but auxiliary freeways. Consider using the 118 and 105 to go west/east, and the 110, 710 or 605 to go south/north. If those are too far away, refer to maps and scope out local routes. Googlemaps or Thomas Bros. will be your friend.
- Stay local and use alternate forms of transportation. Bike, skateboard, rollerblade or even use, gasp, your feet. Your heart will thank you for it.
- Be patient and leave earlier than usual. If we had to pick one, more of the former.
- Have a staycation. There’s a good chance there are some chores around the house that need some attending to. That or some ESPN.
- Go out about your day as you normally would. With all the media attention, odds are most people will treat their car like a leper for the weekend and steer clear of all driving, leaving the roads wide open for adventurous types. This is my plan. I hope it works.
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