The 10 Freeway is the star of the sprawling city, stretching across the belly of Los Angeles from downtown to the Pacific Ocean. Along the way, you can faintly see the Hollywood sign.
It also serves as a central artery for commuters traveling to and from the San Gabriel Valley, a metropolitan area east of Los Angeles that is home to more than 1.5 million residents. During rush hour (sometimes at random times), it’s a place where drivers sit bumper-to-bumper, restlessly inching forward.
A recent fire shut down about two miles of the highway, creating what appears to be a catastrophe for a city already plagued by traffic troubles. Governor Gavin Newsom declared a state of emergency. Mayor Karen Bass urged residents to stay home. And the kicker is, it will be weeks before the affected stretch of Interstate 10 can reopen.
But for many residents, the effects are less than catastrophic and more like just another Los Angeles nuisance. It is true that the closure will cause personal and employment difficulties. But if you’re used to driving in Los Angeles, there’s a sense that you’ve already honed the skills you need for this moment. Muster up some patience, drive on side roads or alternate routes, extend your estimated driving time, etc.
“Driving in Los Angeles is like a circus for those who aren’t used to it,” she said, spending nearly 90 minutes in the car, double the normal time, to get from her home to a patient in downtown Los Angeles. said Rene Jenkins, a hospice nurse who spent time there. Home in Norwalk.
“I think for first-timers, when they see what’s going on with 10 people, they’re like, ‘What the heck? What’s going on?'” she said. “It’s like the first time I went to New York and saw Times Square. But here, for me, it’s normal.”
In Southern California’s car-centric culture, traffic is a never-stale subject of complaint and a constant source of misery. There’s a reason residents always mention their driving routes and make a fuss about driving from 10th to 110th to 5th. point of ridicule. That’s because car navigation is a way of life here, and the traffic along the way is the great leveler against all.
Spread over 500 square miles, the city of Los Angeles is a vast expanse of diverse neighborhoods designed for vehicular travel. Although the region’s bus and rail networks have improved in recent years, it remains difficult and time-consuming to encourage potential passengers to use public transport when multiple transfers may be required. does not lead to savings. Most drivers seem unfazed by rising gas prices.
It’s common to be stuck in a car, constantly, sometimes frantically, trying to find a less demanding route.
For Jenkins, 44, the suddenly longer commute was a pain. But she also said she didn’t “make a big deal” about the Highway 10 closure. After seeing her patient, she didn’t rush home before the traffic jam worsened, and she kept to her daily routine of attending a nearby kickboxing class.
“There’s always something going on in L.A.,” she said. “We’re just used to it.”
Mayor Bass on Monday begged Southern California residents for patience, reminding them they have endured similar emergencies before, including one on a different section of the same highway. The 1994 Northridge earthquake caused two of his bridges on Highway 10 to collapse. These were rebuilt within three months by his workers who worked around the clock.
Gov. Newsom said Tuesday that repairs to Route 10 will be completed even faster this time, in three to five weeks, after structural engineers determined the overpass does not need to be demolished and rebuilt. Instead, crews plan to reinforce 100 poles that were damaged in Saturday morning’s fire. The fire burned in an area under the highway where cars and wooden cargo pallets were stored. Newsom said state leaders initially worried that if the highway needed to be rebuilt, it would take five to six months to reopen.
Miguel Guzman, manager of a hydroponic supply store located near a burnt section of freeway just southeast of downtown, said the closures come on the night of a Lakers or Dodgers game when roads in the area become congested. I likened it to this. On Monday morning, his usual 20-minute commute from Downey became up to an hour, he said.
“It was annoying and it’s not something I want to do, but I’m sure I’ll find a way out, because there’s a side street,” said Guzman, 24. Got ready. “
It may also help that residents aren’t far removed from the coronavirus pandemic shutdowns, which kept office workers at home. Mayor Bass asked employers in the city to allow remote work whenever possible, and said some workers will do so as much as possible.
He said people who don’t need to use the affected sections of Highway 10 on a daily basis could probably avoid the area. However, nearby highways and roads could be significantly affected, putting a strain on local businesses and residents.
Miguel Parreno, an aspiring screenwriter who lives in North Hollywood, posted online: “Other than 10 friends: It was great to meet you.”
“This is the kind of joke you can make if you understand L.A.,” Parreno, 35, said in a later interview. “People in the Valley don’t usually see people on the West Side because it takes them a long time to get anywhere.”
Los Angeles-area residents who endure long commutes often find they have little tolerance for leaving the house to socialize. Even a few miles can feel like a chasm too wide to cross.
“That’s the mentality in Los Angeles: If it’s inconvenient for you and it’s hard to get there, you might as well not go there,” said Bryant Horowitz, a psychology professor at East Los Angeles College.
Horowitz, 45, lives in Culver City and was among those who relied on the burned-out highway to get to work. He scrambled to find an alternative route and was able to find one that only added 10 minutes to his normal commute time. Having grown up in Los Angeles, he knows the quirks of highways and side roads and the best times to drive them.
“Navigation is part of L.A.’s culture,” he said.
Jill Cowan Contributed report from Los Angeles.