Morning Drive Smooth in Wake of Metro Rail Fire

As Los Angeles traffic jams go, this morning’s was not all that bad, as most motorists heeded advice and found their way around the downtown corridor of the Hollywood Freeway--largely blocked since Friday by the devastating Metro Rail subway fire.

“People were avoiding the area,” said Officer Lydia Martinez, a spokeswoman for the California Highway Patrol. “It took some of them a little longer than usual, but it went pretty smoothly.”

All southbound lanes of the freeway between the four-level interchange and the Los Angeles River remained closed this morning, but crews working around the clock shored up enough of the burned-out tunnel beneath the roadway to permit the reopening of two northbound lanes--actually, the right-hand lane and a temporary lane on the shoulder--about 6:45 a.m.