Quickest way to get into the Valley from West LA, Friday afternoon (Santa Monica: how much)

[Atsuke]

I know for a fact that the 405 N gets clogged during rush hour Friday, and it's not fun.

Does anyone here have an alternative to the parking lot clogged freeway? I'm trying to get from Westwood to Van Nuys Airport, and Sepulveda looks like an option but I've never taken it before. Any thoughts?

Thanks in advance!

[Samoi137]

What time exactly? Especially with 405's construction projects, I'd imagine Sepulveda to be congested since it's widely used as an alternative. You could take any of a number of other roads over the Hollywood Hills, but they can also be slow and you still need to get to the airport. Frankly, I'd take the 405 and jump to Sepulveda (with many others) if traffic is bad enough. Others may know better.

[redturtle]

Beverly Glen --> Van Nuys Blvd --> Sherman Way.

[BRinSM]

during commuting hours the canyon roads are as bad as the freeway, i've tried them all. just get on the 405 at the nearest entrance and deal with it, there's no easy way around it. exit the 405 at sherman way and you're there.

[Atsuke]

Thanks everyone for your replies. Probably around 3-4 PM when I'll be heading up. I'd planned to take Roscomare Rd. but since I've never driven up to the Valley around that time I have no idea how bad these inside roads are during rush hour. I know Wilshire Blvd and the 405 is a mess, same with Sunset with the construction going on there.

The important thing here is how long would it take to get from Westwood to Van Nuys during this hour via the 405 if I brave the mass of traffic? I'll be needing this to factor in how much time I need to get there.

Cars trying to get on the 405 from Wilshire backs up inside street traffic so much I recall it taking 50 minutes to get 2 miles out of Westwood to Santa Monica Blvd. Green lights yet the street's so clogged no direction can proceed. I seriously wished I had a bicycle at that time.

[BRinSM]

if you take roscomare, i would get on the 405 at mulholland/skirball center and take the 405 the rest of the way. try to leave closer to 3 than 4, it will save you a lot of time. without traffic, that commute is probably under 30 minutes. during rush hour, i would budget at least an hour. however, it's taken me over an hour to get from nearby beverly hills to sepulveda/ventura when leaving around 4pm.

[Atsuke]

Originally Posted by BRinSM

if you take roscomare, i would get on the 405 at mulholland/skirball center and take the 405 the rest of the way. try to leave closer to 3 than 4, it will save you a lot of time. without traffic, that commute is probably under 30 minutes. during rush hour, i would budget at least an hour. however, it's taken me over an hour to get from nearby beverly hills to sepulveda/ventura when leaving around 4pm.

Yeah, I'd planned to hop on the 405 at that point too, since the traffic usually clears up--at least a bit--near that section of the freeway. It's usually getting on south of the Santa Monica Hills that is the problem. I'll factor in an hour and 15 mins since I'm driving from UCLA and Bel Air is literally right next to us. Hopefully that'll be enough to prevent any blood pressure from rising.