Erik Estrada I-405 closure PSA

[nate_sf]

As one of the guys who admitted to lusting after Erik Estrada in CHiPs as a kid in that earlier thread, I'm posting his PSAs he's done for this weekend's closure of The 405 in LA. Choose English or Spanish:

 

In English: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ANothNxBZrw

 

In Spanish: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wkhPnzYTJG8

 

imho I think he's still looking pretty hunky - especially when he's speaking Spanish...

[+ deej]

He sure did fill out those uniforms well back in the day!

 

It's actually good to mention this closure in as many places as possible. LAPD even reached out to celebrities with large Twitter followings asking them to tweet about it. (Kim Kardashian did, but got the weekend wrong. LOL)

 

Even with all the effort, I had a call yesterday from a guy that wanted me to do a couple hours of work this weekend in that area. I told him no, because of the closure. He hadn't heard about it. <sigh>

[Bosguy]

Erik certainly was a hunk in Chips. I've seen him on a few tv spots and he looks and sounds marvelous. Wonder how he'd look in his UNFORM.

 

That road closure is going to be disastrous to deal with. Just the amount of CONSTRUCTION EQUIPMENT being moved in for the project combined with the CONSTRUTION WORKERS, POLICEMEN, and FIREMEN needed to accomplish this feat in as little time as possible is mind boggling.

 

Bill K.

[orbital sander]

I like his hair silver better...

[nate_sf]

That road closure is going to be disastrous to deal with. Just the amount of CONSTRUCTION EQUIPMENT being moved in for the project combined with the CONSTRUTION WORKERS, POLICEMEN, and FIREMEN needed to accomplish this feat in as little time as possible is mind boggling.

 

I can see what's on Bosguy's mind!

[orbital sander]

I love the term Carmageddon...

[leigh.bess.toad]

I can see what's on Bosguy's mind!

 

Nate, I think you're wrong. It isn't a WHAT that's on Bosguy's mind. It's a WHO. Gee, I wonder.

 

Have a great time in NY this weekend.

 

Deej, I wonder how anyone hasn't heard about it. I had heard about it a few days ago and I live 2500+ miles away.

[Lohengrin1979]

I am dreading this weekend. I'm performing so I have to be out and about and I know it's going to be nightmarish. Nothing in the west end thankfully, but I know the freeways are going to be a gnarled mess.

 

Regards,

Lohengrin1979

[Lohengrin1979]

I am dreading this weekend. I'm performing so I have to be out and about and I know it's going to be nightmarish. Nothing in the west end thankfully, but I know the freeways are going to be a gnarled mess.

 

Regards,

Lohengrin1979

[nate_sf]

We'll see whether the traffic carmageddon materializes or not. In my past experience with similar total shutdowns of the Bay Bridge here in SF, and the Loop 101 in PHX, the media and PSAs are so effective at influencing people to change their plans for the weekend that there ends up being very little traffic when it actually happens. Traffic conditions end up being lighter than usual as most people make alternative plans. I may end up eating my words, so we'll see!

 

I still think it's worth hearing Erik Estrada do a PSA en espanol!

[gcursor]

Yes...I agree with Erik Estrada...I remember watching and re-watching that episode where he's some type of male dancer..it was SO hot!

Gcursor

 

p.s. and if they're going to have so many construction workers, police officers, etc for this project then shouldn't we all be making a road trip to visit those thirsty/hungry guys out on the site?

[+ glutes]

How will they be able to tell the gridlock chaos apart from any other weekend, really?

[jackhammer91406]

life in the fast lane...

 

I live just off the 405 fwy north of the 101. My life will certainly be impacted by the closure this weekend.

A friend of mine sent me this link to a posting on youtube that is pretty funny to those of us who live close by. If you know the streets in L.A. you may find this funny as well..

[+ deej]

That video is fantastic!

 

I'm fortunate to live as far away from the closure as you can get and still be vaguely on the freeway grid. Even so, I'm planning to stay at home.

 

At the liquor store today (weekend supplies, eh?), the clerk who lives in Encino had no idea this was going on. I'm just amazed she could have missed it. It's the people who get surprised by the closure that will cause all the congestion as they try to find alternate routes on the fly.

[orbital sander]

I live just off the 405 fwy north of the 101. My life will certainly be impacted by the closure this weekend.

A friend of mine sent me this link to a posting on youtube that is pretty funny to those of us who live close by. If you know the streets in L.A. you may find this funny as well..

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HA HA HA HA...that was hilarious...

[Decatur Guy]

Here's what gets me about L.A. ... and Atlanta ... and so many other cities. Our transportation infrastructure is so stretched that just one closure of one highway cripples a whole city. That's crazy. It should not be that way. There ought to be enough alternatives that one single closure doesn't collapse the whole system in a city. We've built ourselves into terrible traps.

[orbital sander]

Here's what gets me about L.A. ... and Atlanta ... and so many other cities. Our transportation infrastructure is so stretched that just one closure of one highway cripples a whole city. That's crazy. It should not be that way. There ought to be enough alternatives that one single closure doesn't collapse the whole system in a city. We've built ourselves into terrible traps.

 

Try driving rush hour in central Paris...

[+ deej]

Here's what gets me about L.A. ... and Atlanta ... and so many other cities. Our transportation infrastructure is so stretched that just one closure of one highway cripples a whole city. That's crazy. It should not be that way. There ought to be enough alternatives that one single closure doesn't collapse the whole system in a city. We've built ourselves into terrible traps.

 

Part of the problem in LA is geology. There be mountains* so it's hard to put roads where you really need them, funneling all traffic onto the roads that go through the passes.

 

The 405 is one of the busiest freeways in the country, but there aren't any good alternate routes because of those dang mountains. There are North/South routes through some of the smaller canyons but they're narrow, twisty two-lane roads, prone to backups on the best of days.

 

In an ideal world, public transportation could pick up the burden. But public transportation doesn't sit well with Angelinos, so this weekend they'll just have to suck it up. Some businesses in the affected area are closed. Some are offering discounts for locals. The hospitals in the affected corridors have stocked rollaway beds and box lunches for staff. UCLA med center has extra helicopters on stand-by to transport patients and organs. LAFD has engines and crews spread around neighborhoods that might be hard to reach.

 

The area has been through this before. The LA Olympics were supposed to cause massive gridlock but so many people stayed home it wasn't an issue. The population is bigger now, but hopefully people will react the same way.

 

(*OK, so they're not Pike's Peak, but they're big enough mountains it's hard to put roads there.)

[+ deej]

Everyone stayed away, nothing to report so far.

 

Area residents report the biggest problem encountered so far is the noise from news helicopters covering the story.

 

A jogger and a biker were arrested for being on the closed 405.

 

The biggest story to come out of it will be the bike/jet race. When JetBlue announce a $7 flight from Burbak airport to Long Beach airport, a local traffic reporter said he thought you could ride a bike from BUR to LGA quicker than a flight given airport and runway delays.

 

Game. On.

 

A local bike club left BUR at the same time as the flight and beat it to LGA by a country mile. Even Metro got into the race, and beat the flight by a good bit (but still came in second to the bikes). A guy on roller blades beat the flight too.

 

Of course, with all the media reporting "it's all OK out there" it remains to be seen whether people will continue to stay home.

[KMEM]

It will be quite a feat for a bike to beat a jet from Burbank to Laguardia. BUR-LGA. BUR-LGB might be fun.

 

Best regards,

KMEM

[+ deej]

I knew that acronym, too. Damn fingers type whatever they want some days.

[KMEM]

NP. That is what aviation school marms are for, isn't it?

 

Best regards,

KMEM

[+ honcho]

while SWA can beat a car going from SFO to LAX if they leave at the same time, a decade ago it wasn't clear whether it was worth

the extra dollars to reduce the time from 6.5 hours driving to maybe 3 if you considered the time spent parking at the airport, arriving at least

30 minutes before flight time, waiting for bags, renting a car at the other end.

 

But nowadays with cars twice as expensive, gas at least $3.75 a gallon, insurance going up if you drive an extra 800 miles that year, it's likely

no longer cheaper to drive.

[KMEM]

I would think it depends upon exactly what you include in your cost calculations. At the new federal rate of 55 cents per mile reimbursement which will not completely cover the costs of a newer, average car, the cost to drive would be about $400, round trip. An advance purchase ticket SW SFO-LAX was $200. So, the cost of the trip itself is cheaper on the airline. How you want to factor in your time, a car rental, etc. would be an individual decision and computation.

 

Best regards,

KMEM

[+ deej]

Lots of variables in this.

 

I just looked on Travelocity. The cheapest r/t fare for BUR->SFO (my most likely route) is $474.

 

Measuring time from when I pull out of my garage, driving wins. By the time you allow for traffic getting *to* the airport, and arriving 2 hours before the flight, time on the road isn't that much longer -- I can be half-way there before I would even board the plane -- and you avoid gate grope. Flying doesn't win on cost alone, and time isn't that big of an advantage either.

 

If you're traveling with friends, driving quickly becomes the more economical option.

 

LA->LV is another route where the differential is a bucket of "it depends".