How to stay calm in Los Angeles traffic

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By grove
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stay calm in Los Angeles traffic

Anybody who's driven in Los Angeles knows how stressful it can be. The city spans almost 500 square miles, the traffic is insanely heavy all the time, and the freeways are all have confusing names. (Seriously! What genius decided to name the major freeways the 5, the 10, the 101, the 110 and the 105?) This article is for LA residents or anyone planning to visit Los Angeles in the future. If you know where you're going and what to expect, you might actually enjoy the ride.

Difficulty: Moderately Challenging

Instructions

Things You'll Need:

Thomas Brothers guide map book
GPS software (car or phone)
internet access

Step 1

Budget more time than you think it will take to get there. In other words, if your gut tells you that you can probably get from the Valley to downtown in half an hour, budget 45 minutes. That way, if you run into horrendous traffic, you still won't be late.
Step 2

A "Sig-alert" is what the California Highway Patrol calls an accident that blocks two or more lanes of traffic for two or more hours. Before you leave the house, go to sigalert.com and find out what's happening NOW so you can plan an alternate route.
Step 3

Don't even consider getting behind the wheel without a Thomas Guide, which is a spiral-bound atlas with detailed maps of Los Angeles and the surrounding area. The Thomas Guide is mandatory for every resident of LA and uses a grid system, with letters across the top of the page and numbers going down the side. Find the address you're looking for in the street index at the back of the book, then follow that page number and find the grid - you've found your spot.
Step 4

Better yet, figure out where you're going before you leave the house. Either look up your destination with Mapquest, which is a free online web mapping services offered by AOL. It includes driving directions, although they also include estimates of how long it will take to get where you're going, and they're always wrong (see Step 1).
Step 5

If you can afford it, install a GPS system in your car. This is a global satellite navigation system, and talks to you (in a soothing voice), telling you where to go.
Step 6

Install a Google Maps application on your phone. This is a free web mapping service application that offers satellite images and route planners. In Los Angeles, it also includes color-coded current freeway conditions, so if you're stranded on the West side and want to drive across town, you can check to see which freeway has the clearest traffic.
Step 7

If you're still stuck in terrible traffic, just roll down the windows, enjoy the warm California sunshine, blast some of your favorite tunes, and watch the other drivers in traffic with you. Los Angeles is fantastic for people watching.