Is LA Traffic Really Down Because of ICE Raids?
Newsweek AI is in beta. Translations may contain inaccuracies—please refer to the original content.
For weeks, claims have been circulating online that Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) actions in Los Angeles have led to a sudden and notable drop in traffic on the city's notoriously congested streets and highways.
Videos and screenshots of live-traffic data posted across social media suggest quieter routes and even unheard-of travel times across the sprawling metropolitan area, with some MAGA supporters — and even the White House itself — tying it to a theory that the roads are less crowded because scores of illegal immigrants have either been detained, self-deported or are afraid to leave their homes because of ICE.
When asked by Newsweek about those claims, California Democratic Senator Alex Padilla said "Trump's cruel and inhumane mass deportation agenda has turned communities across Los Angeles into ghost towns."
But claims of an empty 405 freeway, or blazing-fast commutes from the beach to the valley, have received pushback from some longtime Angelinos. They say the dip in traffic volume is being taken out of context, with schools out for summer, the July 4 holiday weekend and general seasonal slowness having more to do with any decrease in congestion drivers have noticed across the city than federal immigration enforcement actions.
Protestors chant and hold signs reading Honk Stop ICE Raids and Honk ICE Out while demonstrating in traffic outside 9200 Sunset on June 13 2025 in Los Angeles California USA.
Protestors chant and hold signs reading Honk Stop ICE Raids and Honk ICE Out while demonstrating in traffic outside 9200 Sunset on June 13 2025 in Los Angeles California USA.
MADISON SWART/Hans Lucas/AFP via Getty Images
In 2024, the LA metro area was ranked 35 in the world for congestion by TomTom, the GPS navigation company. It took an average of 13 minutes and 31 seconds to do a 6-mile trip, with some of the most heavily-congested areas in the downtown and Santa Monica areas.
As one might expect, the busiest times to travel were on weekdays, between 6 a.m. and 9 a.m., and starting around 2 p.m. through 6 p.m.
Then over the past two weeks, with widespread ICE activity in the area, screenshots of Google Maps and other apps with traffic data have gone viral, showing — in some cases — relatively empty streets.
Holy Mother of G-d, it's REAL pic.twitter.com/5yrqoLTZ7Z — AJAC (@AJA_Cortes) July 10, 2025
The theory made it onto Fox News, with host Jesse Watters stating on July 9: "There is no traffic on the freeway. You can go on the 405 and go 65 miles an hour. Trump has literally reduced traffic in Los Angeles."
White House Deputy Chief of Staff Stephen Miller, the architect of Trump's immigration policies and a Southern California native, reshared a video of a deserted 101 freeway, commenting: "What if, this entire time, the key to fixing our cities was enforcing our immigration laws?"
In the days following, those claims received pushback, with locals pointing out that the city is often quieter over the holiday weekend, and that traffic can be calmer in the summer with schools on their annual break. The video clip shared by Miller was posted on July 9 and was said to be taken that Monday morning, coming off the holiday weekend. The clip's provenance could not be independently confirmed.
"The level of misinformation about this is nuts. There's been no significant impact to traffic in LA," wrote Jason Lemus, an insurance claims adjuster and Los Angeles resident.
The level of misinformation about this is nuts. There's been no significant impact to traffic in LA. Here's the current snapshot on a weekday at 11am. And it'll get progressively worse as we get closer to rush hour. pic.twitter.com/HvMYFuQyHi — Jason (@JLemus) July 10, 2025
On July 14, a Monday morning, live traffic data from TomTom and analyzed by Newsweek showed around 39 traffic jams, with a travel time of nearly 15 minutes for a 6-mile journey as of 7:35 a.m. The same trip climbed to over 17 minutes by 8:15 a.m. with upwards of 70 traffic jams noted across the city. The travel conditions did not appear significantly different from the same time a week prior.
An L.A. County official with the Department of Public Works told Newsweek that it was difficult to draw a correlation between federal immigration enforcement and traffic levels in the area, and that summer was generally a quieter time on the roads. The official did note that regular community events put on by the DPW were seeing lower turnout compared to past years.
To be sure, the impact of ICE raids has been acutely felt across the L.A. metro area. Last week, the Department of Homeland Security said its agencies had arrested about 2,800 immigrants in Los Angeles since the beginning of June, a three-fold increase over prior months this year.
On Monday, Los Angeles' Democratic Mayor Karen Bass said she would give cash assistance to immigrants affected by the raids, while a judge stepped in to try and limit the federal government's actions.
The White House has been clear that it is taking significant steps to crack down on illegal immigration in the area, along with other so-called sanctuary cities, in an effort to deliver on the president's promise of mass deportations. But Padilla told Newsweek that federal agents were targeting law-abiding people across the city, and the effects of the sweeps were not limited to immigrant communities.
"Instead of going after criminals, this administration has chosen to double down on raiding workplaces and profiling people who are out driving, creating widespread fear and panic that is hurting our economy and society," the senator said.
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