I-5 Southbound Closures in Burbank This Weekend

Southbound Interstate 5 through Burbank faces another round of lane restrictions and full closures this weekend, as pavement replacement work continues on a stretch of freeway that runs through the heart of the city’s industrial and studio corridor.

The work begins Friday night and runs through early Monday morning, affecting the segment between Cohasset Street and Empire Avenue/San Fernando Boulevard.

Here is what drivers need to know.

Starting at 10 p.m. Friday, up to four southbound lanes will be reduced to two between Cohasset Street and Empire Avenue/San Fernando Boulevard. The southbound on- and off-ramps at Buena Vista Street will close, along with the off-ramp at Empire Avenue. Those restrictions remain in place through 5 a.m. Monday.

During two shorter windows, the freeway closes completely. From 1 a.m. to 5 a.m. Saturday, and again from 1 a.m. to 5 a.m. Monday, all southbound lanes between Hollywood Way and Empire Avenue/San Fernando Boulevard will shut down. During those hours, the on-ramp at Hollywood Way also closes. Caltrans will operate traffic detours during the full-closure windows.

All lanes and ramps are scheduled to reopen by 5 a.m. Monday.

Residents and business operators near the work zone should expect noise, vibrations, and dust throughout the weekend, according to the project notice.

The closures are part of a $23.2 million pavement replacement project covering the I-5 corridor between Empire Avenue and Cohasset Street. Security Paving Company Inc. is the contractor on the job. The goal is to replace deteriorated pavement and improve both ride quality and safety on a freeway segment that handles heavy commercial traffic, including trucks serving the airport industrial area and studio lots nearby.

This weekend marks the fifth of six planned 55-hour extended closures. The sixth and final closure in this series is still scheduled for spring 2026. Full construction is expected to wrap in summer 2027.

For Burbank commuters, the affected stretch sits in a particularly inconvenient location. The Buena Vista Street interchange serves drivers heading to and from the Warner Bros. lot and the broader Media District. The Hollywood Way ramp is a primary access point for Burbank Bob Hope Airport and the industrial warehousing along the west side of the 5. When those ramps close, traffic typically backs up onto surface streets including Hollywood Way, Buena Vista Street, and San Fernando Boulevard.

Drivers who need to travel southbound through this corridor over the weekend have a few options worth considering. Heading east to the 134 and connecting south via the 2 or surface streets through Glendale adds time but avoids the closure zone entirely. Staying on surface streets through Burbank using San Fernando Boulevard or Glenoaks Boulevard is manageable for shorter trips, though both routes will likely carry heavier-than-normal volume once word of the closure spreads Friday evening.

The Friday night start at 10 p.m. coincides with post-work and evening entertainment traffic dispersing from downtown Burbank and the Empire Center area, so drivers leaving restaurants or catching late shows at the AMC 16 should factor in possible delays on the approach to the freeway.

Early morning workers, particularly those with Saturday call times at the studios or early shifts at the airport, will face the worst of it during the 1 a.m. to 5 a.m. full closure windows. Anyone driving southbound out of Burbank during those hours should plan an alternate route before leaving home.

The construction window is narrow enough that the project should cause minimal long-term disruption, with one more planned weekend closure still ahead before this phase completes. The broader project timeline extending to summer 2027 suggests additional work phases may follow, though the most intensive closure schedule appears to be winding down.

Real-time traffic updates and detour information are available through Caltrans District 7 and the QuickMap tool at quickmap.dot.ca.gov.