Road Closures, Reroutes This Weekend Thanks To Optimus Prime

By Marcus Gilmer in Arts & Entertainment on Jul 9, 2010 7:40PM

Oprah's not the only entertainer who can snarl downtown traffic; Optimus Prime is getting in on the act, too. Filming for the blockbuster threequel Transformers 3 takes place down this weekend, largely in the financial district, and that's gonna cause some street closures and subsequent bus reroutes. Also, don't get spooked if you see helicopters flying constantly: an aerial unit will also be shooting over the scene and there promises to be a few parachute stunts. Exciting. The same goes for all the explosions you may see and hear downtown. No, the apocalypse isn't upon us, just a Michael Bay film. Which, really, is about the same, now that we think about it. ANYWAY. What streets will be closed? The Tribune reports:

The following street closures will have the greatest impact on downtown traffic, according to the city's Office of Emergency Management and Communications:
LaSalle Street closed from Jackson Boulevard to Wacker Drive from 8 p.m. Friday to 5 a.m. Monday.
Washington Street closed from Wells to Clark streets and Randolph Street closed from Wells to Wacker from 6 a.m. Saturday to 5 a.m. Monday.
There also will be brief and intermittent closures of intersecting streets at LaSalle between Jackson, Adams, Madison and Monroe.

The closures also mean a slew of CTA bus reroutes which go into effect tonight at 7 p.m. . A full release with info is available from the CTA here and the bus routes affected are: