Chemical spill closes eastbound 210 Freeway in Azusa [UPDATED]

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It's a traffic nightmare out there for commuters on the eastbound 210 Freeway in Azusa. All lanes on that side of the freeway are closed this morning after a semi-trailer truck toppled over, spilling liquid asphalt all over the road and creating a backup for miles.

The accident occurred about 5:45 a.m. near the Irwindale Avenue exit, said Officer Jennifer Connolly of the California Highway Patrol. The freeway is expected to remain closed until about 9 a.m. while Caltrans cleans up the mess and investigators try to determine why the semi rolled over. No one was injured, officials said.

Traffic on the eastbound 210 is being diverted to the northbound 605 Freeway. The transition from the northbound 605 to the 210 is closed as well.

Updated, 10:24 a.m.: The CHP says the eastbound 210 Freeway will remain closed well into the afternoon, maybe as late as 3 p.m. Eastbound traffic is backed up for miles, and westbound commuters are experiencing heavy congestion as drivers slow down to look as they pass, Connolly said. Caltrans is calling in extra units to help clean up the liquid asphalt. About 400 gallons of the mixture spilled onto the freeway, Connolly said.

Updated,12:45 p.m.: CHP officials said earlier the truck toppled near the Irwindale Avenue exit of the 210 Freeway, but the accident took place near the Azusa Avenue exit.

Updated, 4:51 p.m.: Three lanes of the eastbound 210 were reopened as of 4:40 p.m., leaving the two inside lanes on the freeway still closed, CHP officials said. Caltrans crews are still cleaning the spilled liquid asphalt off the roadway, and the two remaining lanes should be opened in the next few hours.

-- Nathan Olivarez-Giles

Image credit: Los Angeles Times

Comments

[Richard]

I would like to see a law written which would make drivers responsible for all lost time of those stuck in the traffic aftermaths of their making. The tanker truck operator who caused this mess should compensate each and every person who has lost hours of his/her life at some lawfully determined rate. (Maybe minimum wage?)

[Mac Boy]

No big deal - Just let everybody drive on it, and the road is re-paved !! - DONE!

[Bob]

Richard,

Are you that stupid? What kind of logic is that? So if you cause an accident, we should bill you for lost time too? But back to the topic, you presume that the tanker driver is the only one who caused the accident. I drive this freeway EVERY work day. If you've ever driven that part of the freeway, you'd know that there's a merge right there from the 605N and I've seen so many near misses because of (mostly) idiot drivers on their cell phones drinking coffee and fighting with their kids in the back seat cutting off truck traffic getting off at Irwindale.

[Radical Raul]

Who said it was the truck drivers fault?

[Marco]

Richard must be mentally challenged. I see how self-centered, arrogant drivers always cut in front of truck drivers to avoid being caught behind a big-rig. Most likely it was someone who WAS NOT on a hands-free phone, maybe putting on make-up, and drinking Starbucks thinking they were entitled to have their own freeway. I drive from W.Hollywood to Whittier and see the selfishness everyday.

[Monique]

Remember back in '84 when all trucks had to stay off the freeways during the day to make room for Olympic traffic? Wasn't it wonderful?!

[matt]

yes, that sounds like a good law proposal (paying for cleanup and lost time), but i'd say only in egregious situations like this one. also i think its way overdue for an overhaul in motorcycle laws b/c they cause so many problems. motorcycle stunts often drag innocent car drivers into their extream risk taking manuvers like lane splitting when traffic is moving at a decent speed which help cause accidents. yes, cars need to look out for cycles but when they are popping wheelies at 80 mph between cars something needs to be done, and this happens all the time. and the cycle license plates need to be bigger so they dont feel so anonymous and therefore emboldened to act out. this will also lessen accidents becuase it will self-restrict some of their aggressive dangerous behavior (esp 710 near long beach). noise pollution is another topic too but that's outside of traffic accidents here.

[Jere]

I drive a motorcycle all the time and split lanes (as is legal) and i can say the most dangerous people on the road are not in a big rig. There are a number of truck drivers you can find nodding off in the slower lanes near the end of their ten hour shift, but they are nothing compared to the SUV's and other people cutting in and out of the carpool lane like school children trying to get to the front of the lunch line. About the 210, has something like this happened before? i'm concerned about the condition of the road after the clean up. will it be smooth like new, or will it be dried in awful speed bumps every ten feet?

[Jere]

i do agree something should be done about the 80MPH wheelies between lanes. And the guys creating blockades to open the freeway for their friends to play are more than a little ridiculous. But the ones splitting lanes actually help to reduce traffic. if anyone is curious the reason motorcycles are allowed to split lanes in most southern states is because
a: most are air cooled machines that need to keep moving to prevent over heating and engine damage(which would cause breakdowns and more traffic)
b: they are more unstable at the slower speeds, so they would swerve (crash causing traffic) or put their feet down (get injured causing traffic)

The car pool privlageis for the same reasons, plus motorcycles average between 40-60 MPG (better than most hybrids) and don't really contribute to traffic in the first place.

Every motorcycle splitting lanes is one less car you have to wait behind.

[Marie]

Bob is right, that area there on the 210 is bad. I've seen people fly across lanes when they realize they missed their exit. They selfishly cut off everyone so they won't have to make a detour at the next exit. I myself don't like driving amongst truck drivers but they have to work like the rest of us and they have to drive somewhere. I've seen so many people dangerously cut off trucks. And what laws? I STILL see people talking on their cell phones without a hands free device, I too see women putting on make-up while driving 65+ on the freeway, and not just lipstick...and too many people are distracted in some way when they should be paying attention to the road. Everyone in So Cal needs to take a look at their driving, and stop blaming others for what you may have caused.

[Marie E]

This is progress. Let's understand that this is a minor occurance compared to how much traffic there is on the freeway DAILY..minute by minute. I am surprised this doesn't happen more often. Let's be kind and logical about this. No one should get compensated, no money paid out. Tomorrow we DRIVE on the 210 where the spill took place. THAT IS PROGRESS.

[Cindy]

I think the DOT should be doing more to enforce the laws regarding the trucks on our freeways. I work at a large facility off of the 210 at Irwindale and load tractor trailers all day. You would be surprised at the condition of the tires on the trucks and trailers that I see. You would also be surorised to hear the drivers talking about driving down the freeway texting and using their laptops. About 20% of the drivers we see don't even speak enough English to understand what we are asking them, it isn't Spanish that they are speaking either. About 75% of the tractors are licensed out of California so they have to follow the other states licensing laws and not ours. These companys need to be held accountable for the condition of the equipment and drivers that they put on our roads.

[SERGIO]

That was the worth traffic I have seen! in a Long time! It took me 1 1/2 hrs to get home, which is only 7 miles away (Duarte to Temple City). All side streets were jammed... people blocking intersections, it was crazy out there!

[Richard Lawrence]

A few points come to mind. First, why are people on the westbound side of the freeway slowing down? Can't they drive by at normal speed and glance? I can't believe there was that much too see.

Second, I know it's popular to ridicule drivers on mobile phones, but what was the reason behind accidents before they became so ubiquitous? In my experience, the accidents I have seen on the freeways have been caused by excessive/unsafe lane changing or tailgating.

Of course there are a few idiot motorcyclists out there, but they are far outnumbered by good responsible motorcyclists. I wish I was among them on the highways, but I'm still too timid to ride.

[linda]

The report said a semi-truck had a accident, who said it was his fault or a motorcycles or someone from the the car pool lane??uhh carpool lane there?? Any way,it took me 3 hours from Pasadena to La Puente so what!!!! I made it Home Safe and unharmed ,I hope the "truck driver" did, We are losing "OUR HUMANITY"

[Russ]

Simply announce the name of the company that caused all the headaches, and leave it up to the people to boycott that company in return. They'll learn. And that means the trucking company, and anyone else involved. Give them a choice, too. Either they publish the person's address so everyone can egg their house, or whomever is at fault should be required to go on TV the next day and EXPLAIN how they f'd up. Finally, if someone gets involved in, say, 3 of these things, they walk for life - no more license. Or at least ship them to Anarctica or Wasilla or someplace basically empty where they can't do too much damage. In a dense area like this, we simply can't have puzzlebrains causing all these problems, especially over and over again.

Traffic helicopters should have huge electromagnets on the bottom, and yank the numbskulls who cause all the delays right off the freeway and deposit them a few blocks away. Traffic helicopters should FIX the traffic, not just report it.

[Ellen Zunino]

The real story was on the surface streets in Duarte and Monrovia. The San Gabriel River is a bottleneck with only 5 streets crossing it in the 8 miles between the 210 and the 10. Through the morning, with eastbound traffic squeezed onto the 2 lane onramp to the southbound 605 and the eastbound 210 coming to a halt, the only 4 lane street in the area and the only street north of the Santa Fe Dam that crosses the river, Huntington Drive, and the two major 2-lane east-west streets, Duarte Road and Royal Oaks Drive, filled with cars. By afternoon, when the traffic on the southbound 605 backed up and came to a stop, all the eastbound 210 traffic washed onto our streets. I listened on my scanner as local police got calls that they were unable to respond to because they were stuck in gridlock. Literally, every east-west street and most of the north-south streets connecting them -no matter how small or far from the 210- was blocked with traffic by 3 pm. I had two appoints that I had to cancel and was trapped at home all day.

[Jennifer]

I drive approx. 18 mi. to work between Covina and Pasadena, and it took over 2 hours yesterday to get to work and to get home. I agree w/Ellen. The extremely limited number of streets that cross the San Gabriel River & 605 Fwy (East/West) between 210 & 10 (Huntington, Live Oak/Arrow Hwy, Lower Azusa, Ramona) were completely grid locked, not to mention the difficulty in manuevering through North/South bound streets in the Arcadia/Monrovia/El Monte area to even get to an East/West street that crosses the 605 Fwy. If you travelled in that area yesterday, you probably agree that you have never experienced gridlock like that before.

The oil spill happened at 5:41 a.m. Caltrans and local law enforcement had to know this would impact afternoon traffic because they did not anticipate re-opening of 210 eastbound until 3pm at earliest. They had ALL DAY to consider a contingency plan for traffic light sequencing or to place traffic officers in these areas to ease gridlock.

I'm very concerned that if we are ever required to evacuate resulting from a major earthquake, does Caltrans, local government or law enforcement have a plan for traffic, or will we experience a repeat of yesterday but much worse?

[Sarita]

Wait a minute, did Richard cause this accident????

[Atkinson]

I agree with the comment that the real story is the bottle neck in Monrovia. This was not the first time I have experienced gridlock here but may have been the worst. It took me 50 minutes to travel 1 mile between Mountain and Buena Vista. Total commute time last night from Pasadena to La Verne was over 3 hours. I am furious at Cal Trans who took over 12 hours to clean up 400 gallons. When I traveled west past the accident at 8 am all the emergency response people were standing around doing nothing. Sand had already been poured, the spill contained and the tow trucks on site. I can only guess that they were waiting for perhaps a supervisor, who knows. I would like to see an apology and an explanation from Cal Trans on how they think they can close any freeway all day. I want someone to answer for the havoc they caused. I am also furious with the police for not being prepared with traffic control to address the gridlock.

Not only am I furious at Cal Trans and the police, I am also furious that while stuck in gridlock in Monrovia I could not make a cell phone call to make arrangements for someone else to pick up my kids; to due to what I can only guess was an overwhelmed cell tower due to all the people small area making calls.
This is no way to live or travel. Cal Trans needs to explain to us all what took all day!!!!!!! Does anyone know how to register a compliant with Cal Trans?

[Allison]

Good lord, such arrogance. Accidents happen, some worse than others. I drive from Azusa to Anaheim every day and I see my fair share of them. Yes, it's frustrating, but I don't start shouting demands for compensation for my time and frustration (by the way, traffic on the northbound 57 was jammed last night, too, because of all the traffic that was on the 60 to avoid the 210). It's one of the prices we all pay for living in such a highly-urbanized area. And for Sarita, who is furious with Caltrans, the police, and God knows who else, do you have any idea what liquid asphalt IS? Do you know how difficult it is to clean up? It cannot be cleaned with sand alone. Some of it also got into the storm drains, which posed a whole different problem, which had to be addressed at the same time. Why you were not able to place a call on your cell phone is beyond me, take that up with your provider, but don't let your engorged sense of self-importance and self-entitlement allow you to believe the world must stop for your convenience. What is wrong with you people?

By the way, the accident occurred at Azusa Avenue, two exits EAST of the 605 merge near Irwindale Avenue. That merge had nothing to do with it.