Governor Gavin Newsom announced that the 10 Freeway will be repaired rather than demolished and that repairs are expected to take three to five weeks.
“We will continue the kind of repairs you're seeing being done…and continue a shoring plan to shore up this site,” he said. “Again, 100 columns have been damaged nine or 10 severely, but that shoring work will continue 24/7 and it will allow us to reopen for traffic in a matter of weeks.
Newsom said preliminary samples from debris removal from the upper deck “show promise.” He added that the structural plan would allow for “surgical repairs.”
Listen and subscribe to The L.A. Local podcast: your TL;DR for what's happening in Southern California
“We'll get at least four of the five lanes open,” he said. “There will be as we get these lanes open some nighttime repair work. So there will be some periodic closures that folks will expect. But the key is to get these structures in a position where we can get cars and traffic moving again in the short term.”
He also said that there were no surprises regarding hazmat material.
“Nothing was highly contaminated on this site. We have dust contamination plants that aren't operational as we speak,” he said. “There is a modest amount of contaminant particularly lead but that was a derivative from the burning of the vehicles.”
Newsom encouraged the public to hold officials to a “high level” of accountability in the repairs, noting that cameras will be up and a live stream of the repairs will be available for the public to watch. Residents can watch the process of repairs by clicking here.
Mayor Karen Bass encouraged the public to continue staying informed.
“We need to stay focused on one, making sure that you stay informed about the traffic, making sure that if you work in a job where you can telecommute,” she said. “Please continue to telecommute. Stay on the freeways. Follow your apps that will redirect you around 300,000 commuters every day through this area.”
She also encouraged Angelenos to work together in navigating the roads.
“I've already heard today of an instance of minor road rage when there is traffic, Angelenos get angry,” she said. “We need to stay connected to each other and turn toward each other and not against each other.”
This comes two days after Newsom and Bass announced the 10-Freeway would be shut down after fire that had occurred in the early morning hours of Nov. 11. Newsom announced on Monday that a preliminary investigation by CalFire revealed the fire was “set intentionally.”
During Tuesday’s press conference, Newsom said there were no updates in the investigation.
Follow KNX News 97.1 FM
Twitter | Facebook | Instagram | TikTok