405 FIX PUT IN FAST LANE FREEWAY UPGRADE AHEAD OF SCHEDULE.

Byline: Lisa Mascaro and Erik N. Nelson Staff Writers

San Fernando Valley political pressure has freed up funds and gotten Caltrans to speed up improvements at the gridlocked 101-405 Freeway interchange, moving ahead the completion date of a critical phase by at least two years.

The widely praised $20 million car-pool lane that opened earlier this year along the southbound 405 from the Ventura Freeway to Waterford Street has shaved 18 minutes off average daily commutes, officials say.

And the $10 million addition of a lane along the northbound 405 from Mulholland Drive to Greenleaf Street, which started in 2000, will be completed next year.

Another $10 million project will begin in August to add a lane to the connector ramp that joins the northbound 405 to the eastbound 101.

Together, the two projects will help ease daylong gridlock on 101 Freeway transition roads.

And, a critical improvement, the so-called gap closure project, to ease the crunch of northbound commuters as they get on the 405 at Greenleaf Street or Ventura Boulevard could be ready by 2006, instead of 2008 or 2009 as originally projected.

``These are, in the scheme of things, relatively small projects. It does show we can make real improvements in relatively small (ways),'' Jeff Morales, director of the state Department of Transportation, said in a phone interview. ``That's good news for us, good news for commuters.''

But elected officials are pushing for more - saying even a 2006 target date is too long to wait for the gap closure, and that the governor and Caltrans should find the $6.5 million it would take to shave another year off construction.

``What Caltrans has done, they've made tremendous progress, but they need to continue to push to move the project forward. It is so vital to Los Angeles and the Valley it needs to be done sooner,'' said a spokesman for Assemblyman Paul Koretz, D-West Hollywood, who along with five other state Valley area lawmakers and Assembly Speaker emeritus Robert Hertzberg recently wrote to Gov. Gray Davis, lobbying him on the issue.

``Assemblyman Koretz believes, and the other elected officials who have signed the letter to the governor believe, they can do better,'' said Scott Svonkin, the lawmaker's chief of staff.

``The reality is, how much is it worth to you in your tax dollars to get this done a year early? It's their money. Do they want to wait until 2006, or do they want to get it done a year early?''

``I don't think if you ask the people who have to drive that they'll be satisfied with the 2006 date.''

The improvements under way at the interchange were among those highlighted in a series of Daily News stories five years ago that targeted the area as ground zero for gridlock in the San Fernando Valley.

The 101-405 interchange is among the worst in the nation, as a half-million commuters a day trudge the crawl along the main route through the Sepulveda Pass.

At the time, Caltrans insisted that virtually nothing substantial could be done to overhaul the hot spot until the newspaper offered a former engineer's suggestions and elected officials clamored for action.

Caltrans now says the political fallout propelled interest in getting the project done quickly, and resulted in accelerated funding for the $80 million portions of the multiphased, $200 million project.

Key funds came from the governor's $5.3 billion Traffic Congestion Relief Program of 2000, which provided $25 million of the gap closure project officials now want to speed up.

Caltrans has also improved its coordination with other agencies to identify problems and find solutions, officials said.

``We're using all the tools at our disposal ... to make sure that we provide relief,'' said Caltrans spokesman Dennis Trujillo.

In responding to a letter from the elected officials this spring, Morales said the gap closure on the northbound 405 could be expedited further by offering performance bonuses to contractors and by closing down two major off-ramps at once - which would inconvenience motorists but would reduce construction time.

``We are currently looking into other means of acceleration to complete the design phase and shorten the construction phase of this project,'' Morales wrote.

``By integrating these options into the project, it would be possible to begin construction in summer 2003, with the opening to traffic in the year 2005. An additional $6.5 million of construction cost needs to be allocated to this project if the additional acceleration approaches are incorporated.''

Koretz - along with Hertzberg and state Sens. Richard Alarcon, D-Van Nuys; Sheila James Kuehl, D-West Los Angeles; and Assembly members Tony Cardenas, D-Mission Hills; Fran Pavley, D-Woodland Hills; and Keith Richman, R-Granada Hills - then called on the governor last week to make it so.

``We're pressing the governor and Caltrans to push this project forward,'' Richman said. ``The 405-101 interchange is a major project that impacts commuter travel times and has a major impact on the economic vitality of the San Fernando Valley.

``The improvements in that interchange are critical to keep people moving and to enable the transport of goods in a timely manner.''

Homeowners of Encino President Gerald Silver said speeding up the project would be worth the price tag.

``I think that money would be well spent. There are tens of thousands of hours of drivers' time lost. The $6 million to move it up is not unreasonable,'' said Silver.

``Clearly, that gap closure is high on our priority list and it needs to be done as soon as possible.''

The freeway projects under way sometimes sound more like an old- fashioned engineering class lecture than the Jetsons-era plans for people- moving that might be expected at the start of the 21st century.

But simple as they are, Caltrans believes they'll pack a powerful punch.

``It's going to be very significant,'' Morales said. ``We're seeing dramatic improvements in commute times along that stretch ... These projects are going to have a significant impact.''

Still, two additional phases of the project - a northbound car-pool lane that will be the mate to the one just opened, and improved southbound connectors to the 101 - are expected to stretch the work out to 2013.

``There's no way the work we're doing out there isn't going to create some disruption,'' Morales said. ``You always have to balance.''

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101-405 IMPROVEMENTS ON TRACK

SOURCE: Caltrans; Daily News research