City to Close Streets, Alter Bus Routes

Today’s immigration marches in Los Angeles may cause significant disruptions of traffic and bus service downtown and along Wilshire Boulevard.

The marches have prompted city officials to decide to close several major streets in the area.

Broadway will be closed between Olympic Boulevard and the Hollywood Freeway sometime after 9 a.m. This will affect traffic across downtown, because it will block east-west traffic from crossing Broadway.

This closure is to accommodate the first major march, set to proceed up Broadway from Olympic to City Hall. The march is scheduled to start at noon, although police expect traffic disruptions beginning as early as 9 a.m. A rally at City Hall is expected to begin at 2 p.m.

A second event will begin at 4 p.m. at MacArthur Park. Demonstrators will march to the La Brea Tar Pits, disrupting bus service on Wilshire Boulevard.

To deal with the Wilshire march, that street will be closed from 2 to 8 p.m. between Alvarado Street in the Westlake district and Cloverdale Avenue in the Miracle Mile district. The city plans to detour traffic along 3rd Street to the north and Olympic to the south.

The Wilshire closure also will affect north-south streets along the march route, with Vermont, Normandie, Western, Highland and La Brea avenues and Wilton Place probably closed for significant stretches beginning at 3:45 p.m.

People with business in and around the Central City area and Wilshire Corridor should expect “to stay awhile,” said Alan Willis, principal engineer in the city Department of Transportation.

He said all plans are subject to change, depending on the size and movements of the crowds.

Streets also could be closed or opened sooner depending on decisions made by supervisors in the field.

Those using public transportation also should expect delays. Signs will be posted at bus stops around the Civic Center advising passengers about possible delays. DASH service on the A, B, C and City Hall shuttles will be affected.

Metropolitan Transportation Authority officials said MTA bus service on Broadway and Hill Street downtown will be interrupted from 10:30 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. Buses that normally run on those streets between Pico Boulevard and Cesar Chavez Avenue will operate on Spring Street or Main Street instead.

Those changes will affect lines 2, 4, 10, 11, 48, 30, 31, 40, 42, 45, 46, 740 and 745.

Bus lines 20 and 21 and Metro Rapid Line 720 will be detoured to 3rd Street between Bixel Street and Fairfax Avenue from 2:30 to 8 p.m.

Northbound and southbound buses that cross Wilshire will be interrupted.

Passengers will have to get off their buses, walk across the march route and board other MTA buses.

For more information, log on to www.mta.netor call (800) 266-6883 (800-COMMUTE).