First New 405 Flyover Ramp Opens at Wilshire Interchange

Metro officials on Monday announced the opening of the first new flyover ramp for the 405 Sepulveda Pass Improvement project.

The new ramp, located at the 405-Wilshire Boulevard interchange, got its first rush hour test on Monday, taking southbound 405 Freeway traffic onto eastbound Wilshire boulevard.

According to officials, the new flyover ramp is 300 percent longer than the previous ramp and includes one additional lane dedicated to traffic exiting to the Westwood area.

Metro was heralding the completion of the ramp without extended road closures for motorists.

“Metro continues to be laser-focused on the ongoing completion of key parts of the I-405 project and delivering them to the public just as soon as they’re ready,” said K.N. Murthy, Executive Director of Transit Project Delivery for Metro.  “Working with the contractor, we were able to completely eliminate several other extended ramp closures here at the Wilshire Interchange.  By the end of this year, we anticipate finishing all of these ramps and finally bringing some much-needed relief to Westside motorists.”

Crews still have one more ramp to finish before the entire Wilshire interchange is complete. The final ramp, which will take eastbound Wilshire traffic onto the northbound 405 freeway, is expected to open in November.

Once complete, Metro said the new ramps will add approximately 75 percent more capacity to the Wilshire interchange and also conform to earthquake safety standards.