Freeway tanker crash quadrupled some northeast L.A. commute times

A fiery tanker crash Saturday at the interchange of 5 and 2 freeways left key parts of the freeways closed Monday, making morning commutes more tortuous in northeast Los Angeles.

Commuting times for some drivers quadrupled Monday morning, according to data provided by traffic-tracking company Inrix. Some portions of the route have since reopened, but the company said drivers should expect similar delays Monday evening.

Drivers headed north on the 5 Freeway between 10 Freeway and the 2 Freeway had it the worst Monday morning, Inrix said. At 8 a.m., the four-mile drive usually takes seven minutes. On Monday, it took 36 minutes. At 9 a.m., the drive typically takes eight minutes. On Monday, it took 33.

Heading south on the same four-mile route typically takes 13 minutes at 8 a.m., Inrix said. On Monday, it took 22. At 10 a.m., the drive typically takes seven minutes. On Monday, it took 24.

“This is four miles,” Jamie Holter, a traffic analyst, said in a prepared statement. “You could bike faster, if you could bike on the freeway.”

Surface streets seemed, for the most part, the more painless option, according to Inrix’s data. The one-mile stretch along Fletcher Drive between Glendale Boulevard and Marguerite Street took six minutes, heading west, as opposed to four.

The northbound interchange of the 2 and 5 freeways remains closed, officials told The Times, as does a portion of the northbound 5 Freeway at the interchange. The northbound 2 Freeway is open.

The southbound 5 Freeway is open, but two lanes remain closed at Fletcher Drive.

Caltrans was working Monday to shore up the freeway tunnel where a tanker truck carrying 8,500 gallons of gasoline overturned and caught fire Saturday morning.

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Twitter: @laura_nelson

laura.nelson@latimes.com