Dismantling the Mulholland Bridge will be an intricate task

It will require an army of workers and the precision of a military operation - a 53-hour undertaking that will practically separate the San Fernando Valley from West Los Angeles for more than two days.

Over the weekend of July15-18, work crews will dismantle a portion of the Mulholland Bridge over the 405 Freeway. The northbound side will be closed from the 10 to the 101 freeways, while southbound lanes will be shut down from the 101 to Getty Center Drive.

An estimated 500,000 motorists drive the freeway during those hours - 500,000 people who are now being urged to stay home that weekend and avoid even the alternate routes of Sepulveda Boulevard and the canyon roads to travel between the Valley and the Westside.

Marc Littman, spokesman for the Metropolitan Transportation Authority, said detailed plans are being developed to handle what is likely to be a traffic nightmare in one of the nation's most populous areas.

"We have multiple agencies who will be working 24-7 in managing traffic on the streets, helicopters in the sky, traffic command centers and staging emergency equipment, in case it is needed," Littman said. "We plan to feed constant updates to the media and through the social media."

Dan Kulka, a spokesman for Kiewit Pacific, the construction company overseeing the project, said preparation work will begin around June 20, which could impact traffic flow around the Mulholland Drive bridge.

Here is a timeline for the actual work that will take place during the 53 hours:

• Beginning at 8 p.m. July 15, Caltrans and city crews will close off freeway ramps and nearby surface streets and shut down one lane of the freeway at a time.

• At midnight July 15, 85 trucks will begin hauling in 1,400 cubic yards of dirt that will spread under the bridge to create a four-foot cushion to protect the freeway from falling debris as the bridge is dismantled.

• At 2 a.m. July 16, work crews will cut slots through the top deck of the bridge, starting at the center of the structure and moving outward.

• Midday July 16 to midday July 17: Operating heavy equipment with 80-foot arms from underneath the bridge, workers will pick away at the bridge, separating concrete from steel bars.

"These are the real stars of the show," Kulka said. "They are heavy-duty operators who have the skill of an eye surgeon in taking the bridge apart. They are able to cut the pieces to a size of basketball that will fall down on the dirt cushion.

Westward, Ho - To Seattle!: Zoetrope

I can appreciate that there are downsides to a drive-in. The screens are smaller and the audio comes in over your AM radio - no ear-busting surround sound here - but I love them. Jim and I went to one in Michigan back in college, and I've always wanted to go to another one. When I found out a drive in was only 30 minutes away, we packed up a picnic, the dog, and headed on our way. We saw "The Hangover Part 2," the movie we wanted to see, which was thankfully the first of the double feature. (When we went in Michigan, we really wanted to see "V for Vendetta," but we had to sit through "Poseidon" first. Ugh, awful.) Jim was excited by the prospect of "Priest" afterward, but I fell asleep before its credits finished rolling. I know, we're wild and crazy kids. Anyway, that only lasted for a half hour before Jim decided it wasn't worth staying for. But all in all, we both agreed we had a really good time. Getting to sit and lay and eat and talk as you please in the privacy of your car while seeing a first run movie? Shutting out all other sound so you don't have to be annoyed by anyone else? It's not the right setting to see every movie, but Jim and I both agreed that we would definitely be back before a place this cool went out of business.

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