Lane closures begin in Mar Vista and Sawtelle for LADWP project

Lane closures along a 1.9-mile stretch of Mar Vista and Sawtelle began Tuesday and are expected to continue for months as the Los Angeles Department of Water and Power constructs an underground high-voltage power line.

Lane closures are expected on sections of Bundy Drive and Centinela Avenue south of the 10 Freeway and north of Venice Boulevard. The closures will take place between 9 a.m. and 3:30 p.m. on weekdays, LADWP officials said in a news release said.

The department said the excavation work would involve installing trenches, underground maintenance vaults and infrastructure improvements. Officials said they do not anticipate full street closures during construction, which is slated to last until March 25.

Tuesday’s closures began on Bundy Drive near the corner of Pearl Street, said Carol Tucker, a spokeswoman for LADWP. She said one lane remained open in each direction.

“People are encouraged to find alternate routes during the construction,” she said.

The road closures mark the beginning of the next phase of the Scattergood-Olympic Transmission Line Project -- an 11.8-mile, high-voltage power line that will connect the Scattergood Generating Station in Playa del Rey to a substation on the western edge of the city.

Installation work began last summer along Vista Del Mar Avenue in Playa Del Rey, according to the news release. The entire project is expected to take about 2½ years.

Officials said the new electrical transmission system will serve as a “critical connector that conveys power to the highly populated western portion of Los Angeles.” The first transmission line between the two stations is 40 years old.

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