A full freeway closure is planned in both directions from 11 p.m. to 8 a.m. on Dec. 29 between Warner Avenue and Beach Boulevard
ORANGE – I-405 between Warner Avenue and Beach Boulevard is scheduled to fully close from approximately 11 p.m. on Saturday, Dec. 29, to 8 a.m. on Sunday, Dec. 30, as part of the I-405 Improvement Project.
The full freeway closure, along with an overnight closure of the Magnolia Street bridge and freeway ramps, is necessary to demolish part of the bridge over I-405. The bridge, which straddles the cities of Fountain Valley, Huntington Beach and Westminster, will be demolished and reconstructed in two stages, allowing it to remain open to traffic during construction.
During this weekend’s freeway closure, northbound drivers will be detoured off the freeway at Warner Avenue, and southbound drivers will be detoured off at Beach Boulevard.
Drivers should expect delays in the area and are encouraged to use alternate routes if possible. Up-to-date closure and construction information is available on the project’s interactive map at www.octa.net/405map.
The $1.9 billion I-405 Improvement Project will add one regular lane in each direction between Euclid Street and I-605, and a second lane in each direction in the center of the freeway from SR-73 to I-605 that will combine with the existing carpool lanes to form the 405 Express Lanes.
The bridge is the fourth of more than 18 bridges to be built, widened or replaced as part of the project, which will speed up travel times on I-405 between Costa Mesa and the Los Angeles County line, an area traveled by more than 370,000 vehicles a day.
The Magnolia Street bridge is expected to take approximately 18 months to reconstruct. Improvements to the bridge include increasing the total number of lanes from four to six and adding sidewalks and bike lanes in each direction.
This 16-mile segment of I-405 is one of the most heavily traveled stretches of highway in the nation, and both the regular lanes and carpool lanes are heavily congested during rush hour and on weekends. The project is critical to accommodate expected employment, population and housing growth throughout the region.
It currently takes drivers about an hour to travel this section of freeway during rush hour and without the project, the commute is projected to double in the next 20 years. Once the project is finished in 2023, it is expected to take about 30 minutes to drive the 16 miles during rush hour in the regular lanes and about 15 minutes in the 405 Express Lanes.
People are encouraged to visit the project website at www.octa.net/405improvement to sign up for construction alerts via automated call, text message or email.
Please click here for full detour information.
About OCTA: The Orange County Transportation Authority is responsible for planning, funding and implementing transit and capital projects serving 34 cities and 3.1 million residents. With the mission of keeping Orange County moving, this includes freeways and express lanes, bus and rail transit, rideshare, commuter rail and active transportation.
