101 Freeway In Boyle Heights To Be Shut Down This Weekend For More Sixth Street Bridge Work
LOS ANGELES (CBSLA) — Drivers beware – a stretch of the 101 Freeway in Boyle Heights will be soon be shut down for two full weekends for another phase of the Sixth Street Viaduct Replacement Project in Boyle Heights.
The freeway closure will begin at 10 p.m. on Friday, Oct. 22 and is scheduled to last until Sunday, Oct. 24 until at least 3 p.m., according to the city's Bureau of Engineering. The second weekend closure will start at 10 p.m. Nov. 4, and is scheduled to last until 3 p.m. on Sunday, Nov. 6.
The closure will allow crews to safely remove bridge falsework under the viaduct, according to city officials.
Both sides of the 101 Freeway will be closed from between the 60 Freeway and the 101/5 Freeway split, just before Union Station. Southbound drivers on the 101 Freeway coming from Hollywood will be redirected onto the 110 Freeway, then back east onto the 10 Freeway, where they can access the 5 and 710 Freeway. Drivers headed for the northbound 101 Freeway will be rerouted north onto the 710 Freeway, then west on the 10 Freeway, which joins up with the 101 near Union Station.
The weekend closures will also impact several on- and off-ramps in the area.
The $588 million Sixth Street Viaduct Replacement Project began in 2015 and has already shut down that stretch of the 101 Freeway for an entire weekend at least twice before. The bridge was built in 1932 and needed to be replaced because it had a high chance of failure in the event of a major earthquake.
