Commute from Lawndale to Beverly Hills (Torrance, Inglewood: live, beach, commuting)

[TravelCouple]

Hi There, we just recently moved to Lawndale/North Torrance (Hawthorne blvd/Manhattan Beach blvd main cross streets) and I currently work in the Beverly Hills area on Wilshire and La Cienega. Does anybody have any advice on the best commute going there and back. My work hours are 9-6. I tried to take the 405 N and exit La Cienega but it took me well over an hour to get to work in the morning. I'm not sure if taking the streets would be a quicker commute and if so which streets?
Thank you for any help you can share.

[WinnieC]

Honestly that's a tough commute.I hate La Cienega into that area always back up.Have you tried Wilshire to La Brea?When I worked on Wilshire I a couple of some side streets off of Wilshire to get to La brea and that I would cut over to La Cienega.I can'y imagine La Brea is to much better than La Cienega in the morning bit it's worth a try.

[motoman]

You can try the streets. It's really hit and miss. Just try a few of the major north/south streets. I can't remember what they are (I lived in that area for just a short bit), but just take a look at a map and find the larger streets that run as far north as possible. A guy I work with lives down your way and a friend of his told him a specific route to take. I think he knocked the commute time down from and hour 15 to 45 minutes. But I don't know if that is a regular time or he just had a good day.

Unfortunately, there's just no easy way in/out of Beverly Hills.

[TravelCouple]

Yeah I wasn't sure myself. I figured streets would be best. La Cienega just seemed so jammed with traffic. I was thinking of just trying some of the other major streets such as hawthorne or praire. I'm essentially on the corner of Hawthorne and Manhattan beach blvd and go to work at the corner of Wilshire blvd and La Cienega. Thanks for your folks input by the way!

[katenik]

Originally Posted by TravelCouple

Yeah I wasn't sure myself. I figured streets would be best. La Cienega just seemed so jammed with traffic. I was thinking of just trying some of the other major streets such as hawthorne or praire. I'm essentially on the corner of Hawthorne and Manhattan beach blvd and go to work at the corner of Wilshire blvd and La Cienega. Thanks for your folks input by the way!

as you might already know, hawthorne becomes la brea (north of century, i believe). you could try that, but on this end of town, la brea is just as congested as la cienega at rush hour. you might also try inglewood avenue, but at florence you'd still have to make your way over to la cienega, and encounter all the traffic coming off the 405 (or avoiding it) when you get there. frankly, i think you'd make better time taking the 405 all the way. as slow as it is, at least there are no stop lights or cross-traffic.

[andyourlittledogtoo]

From 1988 to 1998 I made that very commute and found that the 405 north to La Cienega to Fairfax and right on Washington and then left on a little street a few blocks east all the way to Wilshire Blvd was the way to go. I can't remember the name of the little street but there were several to choose from if you look at a map. Just be sure to pick a side street that has a light at San Vicente or you'll be stuck waiting for a break to race across San Vicente.

I worked on the corner of Wilshire and La Cienega also, and lived in Redondo Beach which is just south of where you start from so it's really the same commute. Going earlier in the morning makes a huge difference on the 405 north by the way. I would be getting to work at 7am so on the road in the six o'clock hour. But sometimes I had to go to conferences in Culver City and taking the same route up the 405 which took ten minutes before 7am took almost an hour when I drove between 7 and 8am. So timing is key here. The 405 north between Torrance and La Cienega is usually very easy and fast as long as you are driving it before 7am in the morning. But it always backed up big time once you got past La Cienega no matter what time it was. The 405 north to Fairfax info is still current through last summer although I didn't make the further commute to Wilshire after 1998 since my job moved that year. But the directions after Fairfax to Wilshire shouldn't be that much different since side streets are involved so I wouldn't expect major time changes on that part of the route.

Hope this helps.

[LASam]

I commute in the opposite direction... WLA to El Segundo. My advice is to avoid the 405 like the plague. Use trial and error to find the best surface streets. For example... I take Sepulveda to Jefferson to Inglewood to Washington to McGlaughlin which becomes Barrington. If any of those streets are backed up... I know my alternatives. Like if Inglewood were bad, I could take Centinela. If Sepulveda were bad, I could go around the West end of LAX to Culver. Commuting is like a game, learn how to play and you'll be alright! Just avoid the damn 405!