The I-10 Freeway is slated to reopen five lanes by next Tuesday just before Thanksgiving and weeks ahead of schedule, according to Gov. Gavin Newsom.

“This is a good day in Los Angeles,” said Mayor Karen Bass.

Gov. Newsom announced the unexpected news during a press conference Thursday evening, a few days after a destructive storage yard fire forced the closure of the 10 Freeway. All five lanes in both directions of the major thoroughfare will be open on Nov. 21 at the latest.

The freeway remains closed in both directions between Alameda Street and Santa Fe Avenue, with the closure also affecting connectors to I-5 and the U.S. 101 and SR-60 freeways, as crews work around the clock to repair the freeway.

A new website was created for commuters to see the latest updates on repairs along with live cameras to track the progress.

RELATED: “There was malice intent,” massive fire under I-10 Freeway caused by arson, says Gov. Newsom

Officials said roughly 300,000 commuters regularly use the 10 Freeway, making it one of the busiest freeway corridors in the country. 

In a press conference on Monday, Mayor Karen Bass said thousands of people were notified through mobile alerts, the Nextdoor app, and an Instagram Live that Bass hosted about the closures and alternate routes. City leaders also made it clear that traditional navigation apps like Waze and Google Maps will provide updated information on the lingering closure.

“Losing this stretch of the 10 Freeway will take time and money from people’s lives and businesses,” Bass said. “It’s disrupting in every way. Whether you are talking about traveling to and from work, or your child care plans and the flow of goods and commerce, this will disrupt the lives of Angelenos. So, I will not settle for anything other than a rebuilding plan and a timeline that becomes a new model for speed.”

Commuters were already warned to expect delays on Sunday, as the major thoroughfare is one of the largest arteries to get to and from downtown Los Angeles. 

“It is all hands on deck for everybody in state government,” said Toks Omishakin, California State Transportation Secretary during the press conference Monday morning. 

Omishakin added that there is a team of structural engineers assessing the area. 

“Our maintenance and structural folks are doing work, getting core samples of the structure to see what full condition the bridge is in and the columns,” he added. 

The state fire marshal’s office completed its investigation into the fire at about 6 p.m. Sunday and allowed Caltrans engineers full access to the site.

Omishakin said it was “too early to say how the fire started.”

In a 10 a.m. press conference update, officials said President Joe Biden has been briefed on the closure. Secretary of Transportation Pete Buttigieg had also been briefed about the situation. 

“What I am keenly aware of is the massive impact both on local, regional, and even national stakeholders here,” said Shailen Bhatt, federal highway administrator. “There’s a lot of goods that come through the ports of LA and Long Beach. They will be impacted.” 

During a press conference late Sunday afternoon, LA Mayor Karen Bass provided additional information for Angelenos to reference while planning their morning commutes, directing them to the city’s Emergency Management Department. 

“Our top line message is this: if you are driving through downtown, stay on the freeway and take the route around,” Bass said. 

She asked businesses in the impacted areas to consider allowing employees to work from home as the situation develops, hoping to ease the looming, unavoidable gridlock. 

“We are also hoping for downtown businesses to join us and lean in on work-from-home policies to help alleviate traffic,” Bass said. “I know we’ve spent this time trying to encourage people to come back downtown and come back into their offices, but while we are going through this crisis, we would like for employers who can have their staff work remotely to do so.”

It’s estimated that the massive blaze burnt up to 100 columns underneath the freeway, and the most pressing question is whether the freeway deck itself will need to be replaced in the coming days. 

Though there’s no timetable as to when the freeway will be reopened, Bass said that recovery and repair efforts were already underway.

“I want to ensure Angelenos that we are working night and day to make the repairs necessary to restore the freeway,” she said. “This is not going to be resolved in one or two days. … As we are learning the extent of the damage, we will keep you informed. But we need to stay together.”

The devastation left behind by the fire prompted California Governor Gavin Newsom to issue a State of Emergency for the area in order to acquire the necessary funds and resources to handle the situation as quickly as possible.

Toks Omishakin, the California Secretary of Transportation, discussed the statewide efforts already underway on Sunday. 

“This challenge on the I-10 is the number one priority for the governor,” Omishakin said. “He’s asked for a 24-7 operation from all state agencies involved in any kind of way, from CalFire to Caltrans to CHP, it’s an all-hands-on-deck approach.”

Omishakin said that Caltrans has secured a $3 million emergency contract to bring in a contractor in order to “test and clear hazardous material, handle freeway and road closures and conduct possible restoration of the structure.”

Bass said that city officials will take a three-pronged approach to handling the issue, starting with making sure that a plan is in place for commuters heading into the impacted area. They will also work on making sure the road is reopened for travelers as quickly as possible, focusing on safety. Additionally, they will continue to provide the public with as many updates as possible to ensure that all are informed every step of the way. 

Related: “It is safety first. It is speed second,” says Newsom on reopening of I-10

Los Angeles Unified School District Superintendent Alberto Carvalho also spoke at the press conference, making clear that no schools were expected to be closed on Monday.

“We’re going to try to provide students with a degree of normalcy,” he said. “Not only educationally speaking. A lot of our students, due to their socioeconomic conditions depend on the breakfast and lunch and enrichment activities that we provide as a schools system.”

Carvalho indicated that several schools will likely experience a significant impact for students and staff as they arrive and leave school, including: 

• Para Los Niños Elementary School, 
• 9th Street/Para Los Niños Middle School,
• 20th Street Elementary School,
• 28th Street Elementary School,
• Metropolitan Continuation High School,
• Inner City Arts,
• St. Turibius Catholic.

“We transport an excess of 40,000 students a day, particularly students with disabilities and those within magnet schools,” he said. “We expect some degree of delay impacting a significant number of students throughout the day tomorrow and over the next days or perhaps weeks.”

Families were encouraged to contact the district to learn more about public transportation by calling 1-800-LA-BUSES (522-8737). More information was available via their website. 

Laura Rubio-Cornejo, the general manager of the Los Angeles Department of Transportation, said that the best option for those traveling to and from the area is public transit. She primarily suggested utilizing the Metro rail system, which will allow people to completely avoid the impacted area. 

Commuter Express buses will operate without fares until the end of the year.

“If traveling in or around downtown LA, your best option is to travel by public transit, particularly by Metro rail,” she said. “If you are driving and your route requires you to pass downtown LA … please stay on the freeway. There are other routes that you can use including the 5, the 101 and the 110 freeways to circumvent the closure.”

Stephanie Wiggins, CEO of Metro and chair of the Metro Board, advised that trips can be planned on Metro’s website, which provides a detailed map of how to get to and from various locations. Additionally, travelers can receive up-to-the-minute information by calling (323) GO-METRO (466-3876).

Metrolink expanded services on its San Bernardino Line by adding four weekday trains traveling between L.A. and Covina. An additional train will provide roundtrip service between Union Station and Rancho Cucamonga in the evening. 

Drivers using eastbound lanes are advised to:

• Exit the freeway at Alameda Street and 16th Street.

In order to get back to the I-10 if necessary, they should:

• Head northbound on Alameda, eastbound on Olympic Boulevard and re-enter on the approach to Lemon Street. 
• Alternatively, head northbound on Alameda, eastbound on 7th Street and enter the I-5 Freeway.

Drivers using westbound lanes are advised to:

• Travel west on Washington Boulevard, north on Central Avenue and west again on 16th Street.

Detours will be conducted in the following areas:

• Eastbound I-10 will be diverted at Alameda Street,
• Westbound 60 will be diverted to northbound I-5 or northbound 101,
• Southbound I-5 will be diverted onto the westbound I-10 but must take the first exit at Mateo Street,
• Northbound I-5 must divert to the northbound 101.

Additionally, traffic officers will be positioned throughout the area near impacted schools, starting at 7 a.m. and lasting until 9 a.m, and again from 2 p.m. to 4 p.m. as students are released from school.