The 405 Freeway will shut down in both directions Friday for two days as crews demolish the north side of the Mulholland Bridge. The closure will stretch 10 miles from the 101 to the 10. The closures are expected to begin as early as 7 p.m., and the entire freeway stretch will be shut down by midnight. The closure is expected to continue until 5 a.m. Monday.
If drivers do not heed warnings to stay away, Inrix says the following will be the top bottlenecks:
- I-5 between Route 118 and I-405: 50-minute delay possible
- Sepulveda Boulevard between Route 101 and I-10: 40-minute delay possible
- Route 101 between I-110 and Alvarado Street: 37-minute delay possible
- I-110 between I-10 and Route 101: 33-minute delay expected
Caltrans says they need to get about 185,000 cars off the roads to make sure they don't have gridlocks and backups. As an incentive, Metrolink is offering $10 off this weekend for those who want to take the train.
Peter Lund lives on Sepulveda and hopes this weekend will be a nice break from the traffic and construction he has been dealing with for a year.
"I'm hoping it's as quiet as last year," he said. "It was beautiful, it was quiet, it was easy to get around so hopefully we'll have the same kind of thing this year."
An exclusive Eyewitness News poll revealed 78 percent of drivers have not changed their plans in anticipation of Carmageddon 2. Only 20 percent have and 2 percent of drivers were not yet sure of their plans.
Local hospitals are also preparing by having doctors and nurses sleep at the facilities this weekend.
As for shenanigans during the closure, the CHP has issued a stern warning: If you access the closed section of the freeway, you will be arrested. The warning was issued based on the actions of trespassers last year.
