Los Angeles Traffic Slumps After Viral Surge Forces Clampdown
- Flow on major toll roads dropped 10% into mid-January
- Refiners cut back on producing fuel as key highways get quiet
The Sepulveda Pass in Los Angeles.
Photographer: Patrick T. Fallon/BloombergThis article is for subscribers only.
Los Angeles traffic dropped sharply over the past month after a surge of the coronavirus prompted new stay-at-home measures, highlighting how the pandemic remains a major hurdle for a recovery in fuel consumption.
Traffic on major toll roads through Los Angeles County dipped 10% from a month earlier in the week ended Jan. 11 to less than 148,000 vehicles a day, the most recent data from Metro ExpressLanes show. That’s a 54% plunge from a year ago.