Action-packed weekend may slow down your drive
By: Will Reisman
Examiner Staff Writer
March 24, 2009
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SAN FRANCISCO — Never mind the exploding tanker truck, the slew of smashed up cars and the circling helicopter.
The chaos planned for this weekend is part of the filming of the NBC television pilot “Trauma.”
The new drama is filming an extensive action scene for its pilot episode at the King Street onramp and offramp to Interstate 280 starting Saturday morning, according to the Municipal Transportation Agency, which is monitoring street closures.
On Saturday, the show’s crew will film a simulated freeway crash in which a tanker truck and several cars become involved in a major collision, according to a statement by the transit agency.
The scene will include a large explosion and billows of smoke, and will be monitored above by a helicopter.
As a result, the northbound King Street exit off I-280 will be closed from 5 a.m. Saturday to 10 p.m. April 1, except during weekday-morning commutes. The southbound King Street exit will be closed from 1 to 4 p.m. Sunday, the transit agency said.
During filming, northbound traffic from King Street will be diverted to the Sixth Street exit, with detours set to flow vehicles onto The Embarcadero.
No Muni service will be impacted by the street closures, although added automobile congestion from the detours might slow down some routes, according to the transit agency.
Filming for the pilot actually began Monday in The City, but that segment of the show did not require any street closures, according to Melissa Armstrong of NBC.
Mayor Gavin Newsom, who helped woo the show to The City, said it could potentially create several hundred jobs and generate about $7 million for San Francisco’s economy.
