This is a commute rather than a road trip, and the spread is wide. The drive takes about 40 minutes at dawn, around 50 for most of the day and over an hour in the late afternoon. The map shows the usual route: I‑110 south, then I‑405 east to I‑710. In the late afternoon the forecast's fastest route switched to I‑5 and I‑710 instead, which makes the trip less predictable as well as longer.
When to leave
The 5:00-6:00 AM window is the prize. Each hour after that adds a few minutes, and 8:00 AM is already ten minutes slower. From late morning to early afternoon the drive settles at around 50 minutes. Avoid 3:00 to 5:00 PM if you can, and by 8:00 PM you are back in the mid-40s.
Other ways to go
Metro's A Line runs the whole way, from Memorial Park in Pasadena to Downtown Long Beach, in about an hour and a half. Trains come every eight minutes or so at weekday peaks. The fare is $1.75, and daily fares cap at $5. It is slower than any drive, but there is no parking to find and no crawl on the 710. Rideshare makes sense for one-way trips to the Convention Center or the Queen Mary.
Parking in Long Beach
The city's City Place garages (Lots A, B and C, near 5th St and Long Beach Blvd) changed rates on October 1, 2026. The first hour is free, then $2 an hour, with a $12 daily maximum. The Convention Center and Arena have four lots with more than 4,000 spaces between them, and every event is paid parking.
On the road
The I‑110 ExpressLanes run around the clock. Every vehicle needs a FasTrak. Carpools of two or more ride free with a FasTrak Flex set to the right occupancy. Without a transponder, you are billed the toll plus a $9 fee, even with passengers. Whatever you do, do not cut across the double white lines into or out of the lanes. The fine starts at $491.
Planning another trip? Read San Francisco to Los Angeles.
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