Motorists in Los Angeles will have to withstand a four-month closure of a crucial San Diego (405) Freeway exit ramp as crews continue to work on the Sepulveda Pass Improvement project.
Construction workers closed down the northbound Sunset Boulevard offramp Friday night to add new lanes to the exit. The ramp will be closed until Dec. 1, according to a Metro spokesman.
Metro encourages drivers to take Wilshire Boulevard or Moraga Drive as detours.
Once the construction is complete, the offramp will be 60 percent longer, which will ease traffic congestion, according to Metro officials.
The closure has struck a nerve with some residents who live in the nearby town of Bel Air.
Map: Traffic Page | Detour Information: Sunset Blvd. Closure | Watch: Two Minutes of Carmageddon
“That’s where we always used to go to get to Sunset,” said Muriel Klapper, 86, a frustrated homeowner who has lived in Bel Air for 50 years. “What are we supposed to do?”
In addition to the inconvenience caused by the exit ramp closing, Klapper is worried about the noise levels and blackouts caused by the construction.
“We are very sick and tired of it, we have no power,” she said. “Why should we move because of a freeway?”
Some drivers welcome the close, saying that it will ease traffic the other way around.
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“I do think it will be helpful because less traffic (will be) heading (into) the Valley,” said Jamie Iffland, a commuter.
About 1,200 people use the Sunset Boulevard exit every day during its peak hours, Dave Sotero, spokesman for Metro told NBC4 in an earlier report.
