I have heard all sorts of stuff about the traffic in SoCal.
My query:
How long does it take to drive from Irvine to Laguna Beach, and vice versa? Does day vs. night make a difference? I really need to know about the night drive in particular (some characters I have are vampires).
Which road(s) would you use?
Please give me times like "an hour" or "ninety minutes". I have discovered that "a long time" is defined differently in different places. Where we live, 30 - 40 minutes would be a prolonged drive to our jobs. We don't live 'close' though, which is defined as an 11-mile trip (one vehicle, two jobs).
Any and all help would be appreciated!
Kyrrdis
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50,345 / 50,000
Nov 13, 2007 - 13 13
Ha! You found me! :) I used to drive from two cities over from Irvine to the beginning of Laguna Beach for 2 years.
Time of day makes all the difference in the world. Also, where in Laguna Beach? It makes a difference if it's to a house, hospital, or the beach itself.
I'll tell you what I know.
I left at 10:20 am to arrive at 11:00 or earlier. I didn't always make it. Sometimes it was smooth... Others...
My record is passing four accidents to get from one point to another. Often there were one or two. Everyone would slow down to look so of course there was back up. This is of course after rush hour and during daylight.
The best route that the regulars who made this commute used is the 5 to the 133 (also known as the Laguna Canyon Road.) The 133 drives through what is a lot of greenery for California. I just checked, and it is called Laguna Coast Wilderness Park. Usually the 133 is a good choice, but if there is a problem you are stuck as it is a one lane road. It curves a bit, too. One last thing, there is a sign at the beginning that says you HAVE to turn on your headlights even during daylight.
Other tidbits: if you are on the 5 and you want to use the 133, if you go south it is free. If you go north it is a toll road, but you don't want to go north. Still, it is something I had to figure out. One last thing, locals will also call a freeway or interstate THE 5 or THE 405. We don't just call them 5 to 133 in our directions. I married a Southerner who moved here, and we noticed that little difference from one side of the country to the other.
Let me know if I can help if you have more specific locations and times. You can send me a nanomail with questions. :)
Happy writing.
50,538 / 50,000
Nov 13, 2007 - 16 37
It depends on a lot of factors, especially time of year. In the summer I avoid Laguna Beach because the tourists make it a traffic and parking nightmare.
I would say a non-traffic average would probably be somewhere from 30 to 40 minutes...maybe a bit longer, depending on where you are starting and how fast you are willing to drive on the multi-lane bits before you get to the Canyon Road. The Canyon Road is single lane and twisty, no passing...but a vampire might be willing to ignore those rules. It widens out to two lanes again as you get really close to Laguna Beach. I would say that night makes a big difference, especially if you're talking very late at night. Those who actually live there could probably be more precise than I, however.
During the rush hours in the mornings and evenings it could vary wildly. I have never driven from Laguna to Irvine ever, much less during rush hour, but I've driven everywhere in-between for various reasons. Some days the traffic on the single lane part of the Canyon Road is stopped. There have been times when it is closed completely for various reasons (the last two times were because of power lines). In those cases, you would have to go farther north or south and pick up Pacific Coast Highway (called PCH by the those around here).
A few more things to know, just 'cause you're not from around here:
-Bicycles frequent the Canyon Road between Laguna and El Toro Road, sometimes large groups of serious cyclists in their multi-colored outfits. Doing this at night is rather suicidal, but I know some people who do.
-There is a spot along the Canyon Road where hispanic workers gather to wait for day work. Not at night, of course.
-Lots of buildings as you get close to Laguna that are dedicated to art of some kind - glass studios, galleries, and of course the place where they hold the Pageant of the Masters.
-I think there is also a dog park along somewhere down the canyon on the left as you head toward Laguna.
That's all I can remember, and my memory is not super reliable, so people please chime in if I'm remembering things that aren't there anymore.