LOS ANGELES, CA -- Los Angeles drivers honked and waved from their cars as the 405 highway closure known as "Carmegeddon" ended Sunday afternoon. To the surprise of many in California, the highway closure which has drawn national attention was finished 16-hours ahead of schedule just after noon.

According to the Los Angeles Mayor, there were no major problems reported during the freeway closure, despite the alarming warnings all over the media about potentials traffic jams leading up to the closure. The mayor announced that the crews will receive a 300 thousand dollar incentive for finishing early, eliminating the need for them to work another 12 hour shift, which would have cost the city 700 thousand dollars.

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Traffic in the Los Angeles area is so far moving smoothly, several hours after authorities shut down a 10-mile stretch of one of the busiest U.S. freeways for a massive 53-hour construction project.

Ramps to the normally clogged Interstate 405 began shutting down Friday evening before the entire roadway was closed at midnight. Crews are removing the 50-year-old Mulholland Bridge as part of a $1 billion widening project.

Saturday morning, demolition work was proceeding on schedule.

KNX radio reports that most drivers have been co-operating with calls to stay away from the area around the 405. No traffic jams have been reported, although motorists are experiencing minor delays in some areas.

Weekend traffic is expected to reach its peak Saturday afternoon.

KCBS traffic blog: 405 closure traffic updates

For weeks, authorities have urged residents to avoid getting in their car, lest they trigger what's been hyped as "Carmageddon."

Such an event could back up vehicles from the 405 — locals like to joke that its name is shorthand for "traffic that moves no faster than 4 or 5 miles an hour" — to surface streets and other freeways, causing a domino effect that could paralyze much of Los Angeles.

With warnings having been broadcast through television, radio, social media and flashing freeway signs as far away as San Francisco, much of the city's nearly 4 million residents appear ready to stay off the roads.

Crews systematically began closing on- and off-ramps beginning Friday evening before the entire 10-mile section was closed at midnight.

Evening rush-hour traffic was light in the hours before the shutdown. Motorists took to Twitter to marvel at the rare sight of traffic maps showing a sea of green, indicating that traffic was flowing.

"Carmaggedon? More like carmaheaven. No traffic in L.A.," tweeted Chip Dorsh, who said he breezed through a canyon road.

"When I left work, it was like a no man's land," Dorsh later told The Associated Press.

Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa said he thinks traffic will move smoothly if motorists take advice and stay close to home throughout the weekend.

"We can either say we survived Carmageddon or we survived the Carmageddon hype," he said.

If people listen, there will be no shortage of staycation activities or adventures awaiting them.

They can snag free cotton candy at the Santa Monica Pier or drop in on Michael Jackson's dermatologist for 25-percent-off Botox injections so that frazzled commuters won't look quite so frazzled.

Those who do want that real road warrior look might consider swinging by T-Man's Tattoos (located just off the 405) in the San Fernando Valley.

"If you come on in and mention you're in town because you're stuck from Carmageddon, you can get 15 percent off tattoos and piercings," proprietor Howard Teman said.

A few planned to take discounted helicopter rides over the empty stretch of the 405, several dozen others have $4 to $5 tickets to board special JetBlue flights between Long Beach Airport and Bob Hope Airport in Burbank. The airline, seizing on the national buzz about Carmageddon, offered the deal this week by calling the short, 20- to 30-minute flights a "planepool" between the San Fernando Valley and the coastal city.

Tickets sold out within three hours.

The flights inspired a group of cyclists to challenge JetBlue to a race. Members of the Wolfpack Hustle planned to peddle on a roughly 40-mile route starting near the Burbank airport to see whether they or a JetBlue passenger will reach Long Beach first.

Cycling advocates said they hope to show that gridlock can be avoided without using a car or plane.

"Everyone's freaking out about car traffic around the 405, bicycling represents a very viable alternative," cyclist Gary Kavanagh said.

Meanwhile, construction crews were working feverishly to take down a section of the 50-year-old Mulholland Bridge as part of a $1 billion freeway-widening project.

The UCLA Health System, which runs the huge Santa Monica-UCLA Medical Center located near the 405, was putting its weekend staff in dorm rooms and hotels to ensure they don't run late to work. Three helicopter companies were on standby to transport patients and human organs in case of emergency procedures.

For those who do have to drive, a Cedars-Sinai Medical Center psychiatrist was offering advice on how to keep calm and stay safe.

Among Dr. Waguih William IsHak's advice: avoid road rage at all costs, apologize profusely to anyone you accidentally cut off in traffic, be sure to leave for your destination with a full tank of gas and a cell phone.

Or, better yet, authorities say, stay at home.

"If everyone heeds our advice, this whole weekend will be in our rear view mirror and everybody will be fine," Los Angeles County Supervisor Zev Yaroslavsky said.