Burbank Airport Traffic Delays: What Drivers Need to Know

Hollywood Burbank Airport is warning travelers to budget extra time getting to their flights as construction work begins along Hollywood Way, the main corridor into the airport.

A lane closure on southbound Hollywood Way near Thornton Avenue will squeeze traffic headed toward the terminal through June 6. The work runs Monday through Saturday, 9 a.m. to 3:30 p.m., giving drivers a roughly six-and-a-half-hour window each weekday and Saturday to navigate the tighter roadway. Airport officials are telling passengers to arrive at least two hours before their scheduled departure.

The closure affects more than drivers. The sidewalk and bike lane on the west side of Hollywood Way between Winona Avenue and Thornton Avenue will also shut down for the duration of the project. Cyclists and pedestrians who use that stretch regularly will need to find another path.

For anyone who drives to the airport, officials are pointing to two workarounds. The Empire Avenue entrance offers an alternate way in that sidesteps the Hollywood Way bottleneck entirely. Drivers can also approach from the north by traveling westbound on Thornton Avenue. Neither option adds significant distance, but both require knowing your way around the airport’s immediate neighborhood. If you haven’t used the Empire Avenue entrance before, pull up a map before you leave home.

The construction is expected to take about 60 days total. Given the Monday through Saturday schedule, that puts the project wrapping right around the early June deadline, assuming no delays.

Hollywood Way is the kind of road where a single lane closure can ripple quickly. The street carries not just passenger traffic but rideshare pickups and dropoffs, rental car shuttles, and deliveries. Morning and midday congestion already builds during peak travel periods, and the construction window, 9 a.m. to 3:30 p.m., overlaps with check-in rushes for early afternoon flights. Travelers with midday departures will feel this most.

For Burbank residents who live in the neighborhoods flanking Hollywood Way, including those near Magnolia Park or the streets west of the airport, expect some spillover onto local roads as drivers hunt for faster paths. The Thornton Avenue westbound approach could see heavier use than usual.

Rideshare passengers should communicate with their drivers before the trip. Drivers unfamiliar with the alternate entrances may default to the Hollywood Way approach and get stuck. Giving your driver a heads-up or dropping a pin at the Empire Avenue entrance could save meaningful time, especially for early morning flights when rideshare windows are tight.

Parking structure access has not been affected, according to airport information, but the approach to those structures still runs through the impacted corridor for many drivers coming from the south. Confirm your route before heading out.

The airport serves a loyal base of Burbank and San Fernando Valley travelers who choose it specifically to avoid the chaos of LAX. A smaller terminal, faster security lines, and ground-level boarding are part of the appeal. A lane closure on the main access road chips away at that convenience, at least temporarily.

The 60-day timeline puts construction wrapping up just ahead of the summer travel surge. June and July are among the busiest months at Hollywood Burbank, with families leaving for summer vacations and entertainment industry workers heading out before production schedules tighten in the fall. Getting the work done before that crunch is clearly the goal.

Until then, the simplest advice is the same advice the airport is already giving: leave earlier than you think you need to. The Empire Avenue entrance works. The Thornton Avenue approach works. What won’t work is assuming Hollywood Way will move normally during construction hours and banking on that assumption to make your flight.

Check the Hollywood Burbank Airport website for any updates to the construction schedule before heading out.