Media Blitz Warns Drivers To Stay Off The 405 During July Shutdown

LOS ANGELES (CBS) — City transportation officials are warning commuters to prepare for what some are calling a traffic Armageddon this summer.

KNX 1070's John Brooks reports an ad blitz from Metro wants to convince a half-million drivers to prepare for a looming 405 freeway shutdown.

Starting this week, ads on radio and TV advertisements in addition to a newspaper campaign will publicize the plans for the 53-hour-long closure beginning on Saturday, July 16.

Cross-mountain roads like Topanga Canyon and Beverly Glen will be jammed, while workers workers at the Veterans Administration hospital in Westwood have already been warned about possible gridlock.

The freeway closure is part of a move to tear down half of the towering Mulholland Drive overpassin the Sepulveda Pass, while the remaining half will remain open until a replacement structure is finished.

Officials will use the weekend as a sort of social experiment as well: another weekend-long demolition closure is planned for next summer.