Los Angeles is a city known for its warm weather, amusement parks, film studios and traffic jams. If you live in the City of Angels or are planning to visit the area on holiday, there are ways to avoid the notorious L.A. traffic. Opting not to travel along certain routes, taking the Metro and even driving through back streets and on less-crowded highways can save you time while you travel to your destination.
Take the Metro Rail. Los Angeles has six train lines that operate seven days a week, with trains running from five to 10 minutes apart during peak hours. Locations that are serviced by the Metro include Civic Center, Universal City, Pershing Square, Redondo Beach and Little Tokyo, to name a few. Regular adult fares start at $1.50 as of November 2010.
Know when major events are occurring. Marathons, parades, filmings and movie premieres can all play a part in traffic congestion in Los Angeles. Roads can be closed down during major events, so avoid traffic and be sure to check your traveling route before departing from home. Drivers can do this by listening to traffic reports on television channels or going online to websites such as TrafficInfo to check out any major events where you'll be driving. Channel 35 in Los Angeles is designed to notify residents of any major disasters or events in the local area, so tune into the station to know which route to take to avoid congestion.
Avoid the Hollywood Freeway. This stretch of road, which runs from the Sun Valley district to downtown Los Angeles, is rated the No. 1 freeway with the worst commute time in the nation, with a total of 600 weekly hours of bottleneck congestion along the freeway.
Avoid the freeways altogether. If you can swing it, opt to drive through back streets or alternate roads to get to your destination. Install a GPS system in your vehicle to navigate the way and shave driving time by avoiding bumper-to-bumper traffic along the less-crowded roads. You might be slightly inconvenienced by having to drive a longer distance, but you'll save time by not sitting in freeway traffic.
