Los Angeles Motorways

 

(ca. 1950)* – Aerial view looking west showing the 4-level interchange where the Hollywood Freeway (U.S. 101) and the Pasadena/Harbor Freeway (SR 110) meet. Grand Avenue is running left to right at the bottom. Figueroa Street goes under the freeway. It intersects with Boston Street to the right of the freeway bridges. The inbound Hollywood can be seen exiting at the Hope/Temple exit in the lower-left.
The image above shows a map of the area around the Hollywood and Harbor Freeway interchange. There is an overlay of another map that shows what was there before the freeways. This provides a hint about how neighborhoods are decimated by freeways.*
Historical Notes
Figueroa became Boylston, Pearl (previously Grasshopper) became Figueroa, the right-hand Beaudry became Fremont and most of Bellevue became Sunset Blvd. At the rightmost edge of the tract map, Philadelphia became Grand Ave.

 

(1962)##^# – Aerial view showing the Santa Monica Freeway under construction near the Harbor Freeway with downtown Los Angeles in the background.
Historical Notes
Work on the Santa Monica Freeway progressed slowly, and in stages. It was not until October 1964 that it extended west to La Cienega Boulevard, and on January 29, 1965–several years after residents in the freeway’s path were displaced–a Goodyear blimp helped cut the ribbon on the 4.5-mile segment between La Cienega and Bundy Drive.
(1964)^^^* – View looking west showing the Santa Monica Freeway under construction at La Cienega and Venice boulevards.
Historical Notes
Local opposition immediately coalesced against the Santa Monica Freeway when state highway planners announced a major part of its route in August 1955. The entire route — known originally as the Olympic Freeway — would span 16.6 miles between the East L.A. Interchange in Boyle Heights and Pacific Coast Highway in Santa Monica, barreling through quiet bedroom communities on its path to the sea.
Hundreds of churches, homeowners groups, and other community organizations rallied against the proposal, focusing their opposition on the 6.6-mile stretch west of La Cienega Boulevard.
In April 1956 planners revised their original route in the face of community opposition. But while the new route saved 47 homes, it largely shifted the freeway away from the domains of its most vocal opponents and into new neighborhoods. Local opposition persisted, but the highway commission held firm.^

 

(1963)^^ – The Vincent Thomas Bridge nears completion between San Pedro and Terminal Island.
Historical Notes
The bridge is 6,060 feet long, 52 feet wide, 365 feet tall. Its longest span is 1,500 feet, and the clearance below is 185 feet.^*
Construction of the bridge required: 92,000 tons of Portland cement; 13,000 tons of lightweight concrete; 14,100 tons of steel; and 1,270 tons of suspension cable.
The main span of the Vincent Thomas Bridge is 1,500 feet long as compared to the Golden Gate Bridge at 4,200 feet long.**#^