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Preferred route for SF Bay Area <-> LA metro?

Started by SeriesE, July 09, 2020, 08:28:47 PM

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Preferred route for SF Bay Area <-> LA metro?

US 101
9 (47.4%)
I-5
7 (36.8%)
CA-99
2 (10.5%)
Other (explain)
1 (5.3%)

Total Members Voted: 19

SeriesE

Which long distance route do you prefer for SF <-> LA travels?


Max Rockatansky

CA 198, CA 25, CA 129, CA 1, CA 9, and CA 35.  Maybe CA 130 if I'm felling up for some really twisty roads east of Mount Hamilton. 

Roadgeekteen

I haven't been on any, but CA 1 is missing. Seems to be the most scenic option.
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Max Rockatansky

#3
Quote from: Roadgeekteen on July 09, 2020, 10:57:58 PM
I haven't been on any, but CA 1 is missing. Seems to be the most scenic option.

I did it all the way from Santa Monica all the way north to the Golden Gate Bridge in 2014, quite the adventure but definitely not fast.  I came up with my own San Andreas Fault/Coast Range option once for the Freeways of Los Angeles Group once that was a shun pike Route.  I included as many historic highways and cool roads as possible:

-  Originate at Broadway and 7th Street in Los Angeles (original endpoint of US 66)
-  Broadway (Old US 66)
-  Avenue 19
-  San Fernando Road (Old US 99/US 6)
-  Sierra Highway  (Old US 99/US 6 and Beale's Cut of El Camino Viejo)
-  Newhall Avenue  (Old US 99/US 6)
-  Railroad Avenue (Old US 99/US 6)
-  Bouquet Canyon Road
-  Seco Canyon Road
-  Copper Hill Drive
-  San Francisquito Canyon Road (El Camino Viejo and St Francis Dam Site)
-  Los Angeles County Route N2 (Partially Old Ridge Route)
-  CA 138
-  Gorman Post Road (Old Ridge Route)
-  Gorman School Road
-  Peace Valley Road
-  Frazier Mountain Park Road (El Camino Viejo)
-  Cuddy Valley Road (El Camino Viejo)
-  Mil Potrero Highway (El Camino Viejo)
-  Hudson Ranch Road
-  CA 166/CA 33
-  Soda Lake Road (Partially dirt through Carrizo Plain National Monument)
-  CA 58
-  Bitterwater Road
-  CA 41/CA 46
-  Cholame Valley Road
-  Cholame Road
-  Parkfield-Coalinga Road (Partially dirt)
-  Parkfield Grade
-  CA 198
-  CA 25
-  Union Road
-  The Alameda/Old US 101
-  Third Street/Old US 101
-  Monterey Street/Old US 101
-  First Street/Old US 101
-  San Juan Highway/Old US 101
-  CA 129
-  Lincoln Street
-  Freedom Boulevard
-  Soquel Drive
-  Water Street
-  River Street
-  CA 9
-  CA 236/Big Basin State Park
-  CA 9
-  CA 35
-  CA 35/CA 92
-  CA 35
-  Skyline Boulevard
-  Chateau Drive
-  Ralston Avenue
-  Occidental Avenue
-  CA 82/El Camino Real (Old US 101)
-  Alemany Boulevard
-  Mission Street (original US 101)
-  Gough Street (original US 101)
-  Market Street (original US 101)
-  US 101/Van Ness Avenue
-  Van Ness Avenue (original US 101)
-  Bay Street (original US 101)
-  Larkin Street
-  Beach Street
-  Hyde Street to the Hyde Street Pier (Old US 101/US 40)

I would have liked to use Bay Street to Hyde but that is only possible going southbound.  From Gorman one would need to get gas because the next station is all the way in Tres Pinos near Hollister.  None of the roads are high clearance and can easily be done by car even in mild wet weather.  The Parkfield Grade might be dicey in the winter due to it having several fords over Warthan Creek approaching CA 198. 

SeriesE

Quote from: Roadgeekteen on July 09, 2020, 10:57:58 PM
I haven't been on any, but CA 1 is missing. Seems to be the most scenic option.

IMO CA-1 is only scenic north of San Luis Obispo or south of Oxnard. Between those two points, it's either multiplexed with US 101 or too far inland so it's as scenic as US 101.

mapman

I've done both, and although slower, I much prefer US 101, as it has more scenery that I-5.  However, if you're in a hurry, I-5 is certainly a much better option.

Max Rockatansky

Quote from: SeriesE on July 10, 2020, 01:27:09 AM
Quote from: Roadgeekteen on July 09, 2020, 10:57:58 PM
I haven't been on any, but CA 1 is missing. Seems to be the most scenic option.

IMO CA-1 is only scenic north of San Luis Obispo or south of Oxnard. Between those two points, it's either multiplexed with US 101 or too far inland so it's as scenic as US 101.

I did like the quiet back country around Lompoc and Vandenburg AFB, especially since one of the Missions is a State Historic Park that way.  The goal of that 2014 trip was to do as little freeway mileage as possible.  I think that I only logged about 300 miles of freeway on a 2,500 mile trip (most was US 101 north of San Francisco). 

GaryA

I vary my choice based on how much time I have, whether it will be day or night for most of the trip, what route(s) I've used on other recent trips, and just how I feel that day.  Are you interested in speed, scenery, history, or something else?

Overall I probably use US 101 (often including Jolon Rd) more that any other choice (driving to San Jose), though I-5 is probably faster depending on your endpoints.  Recently I've been including CA 25 fairly often, and CA 33 is nice, especially between Ventura and CA 166.  But I'm always open to new route suggestions.

skluth

I only moved to CA two years ago and haven't made it north of Bakersfield yet. However, I did take CA 1, US 101, and I-5 back in the mid 70's when I was visiting relatives. Back then, I-5 is what you took if you wanted to make the fastest time, US 101 was the best combo for time and scenery, and CA 1 was what people did for leisure. I've not traveled the other options yet, though Max and a few others here have definitely piqued my interest to try them once we get a vaccine.

SeriesE

Quote from: GaryA on July 10, 2020, 11:41:01 AM
I vary my choice based on how much time I have, whether it will be day or night for most of the trip, what route(s) I've used on other recent trips, and just how I feel that day.  Are you interested in speed, scenery, history, or something else?

Overall I probably use US 101 (often including Jolon Rd) more that any other choice (driving to San Jose), though I-5 is probably faster depending on your endpoints.  Recently I've been including CA 25 fairly often, and CA 33 is nice, especially between Ventura and CA 166.  But I'm always open to new route suggestions.

I have driven both US 101 and I-5. I tried US 101 based on the posts in this forum so I'm wondering what other routes people use to get around, so I can try it in a future trip.

GaryA

Quote from: SeriesE on July 10, 2020, 03:58:20 PM
I have driven both US 101 and I-5. I tried US 101 based on the posts in this forum so I'm wondering what other routes people use to get around, so I can try it in a future trip.

There are lots of possibilities out there, depending on how much time you have available and how adventurous you are.  I'm only mildly adventurous and still have lots of choices.  All of these are daytime trips, of course -- if I'm traveling at night, it's 5 or 101.

If I'm mostly following US 101 and want something that only adds 15-30 minutes, I will more often than not take Jolon Rd between north of Camp Roberts and just north of King City.

Again when following US 101, you can pick out one or several sections of Old 101 - anywhere from the old main street of one town to longer stretches.

I'll occasionally use CA 33 and CA 166 when I expect bad traffic in Santa Barbara (it doesn't save time overall, but it's a good excuse to get off the main road).

CA 25 is scenic and (especially on the southern end) lightly traveled, I've done 101->G13 at King City->25, and 101->198->25, and 5->198->25.

CA 1 is always a possibility.

For a little longer route, I might suggest US 101 north to CA 33 north to CA 198 west to CA 25 north to US 101 north.  You can incorporate Max's suggestion of using Soda Lake Rd and Bitterwater Rd north of CA 166 if you like -- I haven't yet, but that's now on my list of routes I want to try.

jdbx

As others have said, US-101 is a prettier and more relaxing drive, but in my experience it can add up to an hour to total travel time, depending on traffic.  I drive an electric car and I like the charging options along I-5 much better, the chargers along US-101 fill up often and I am loathe to wait in line to charge.

That said, I'm actually a fan of CA-99 through the valley.  Particularly on holiday weekends when I-5 is often logjammed with trucks and people unfamiliar with how to pass properly, I like how CA-99 has many more sections with a third lane, which makes passing much easier.


briantroutman

The years I lived in California (Marin County), I made fairly frequent trips to Los Angeles for long weekends.

I think the most common route was to take I-5 down and US 101 back up. Choosing I-5 for the southbound leg was largely a practical matter–generally to get out of the Bay Area as quickly as possible and avoid the worst traffic trouble spots as we departed on a Thursday or Friday afternoon, and also to get to our destination as quickly as possible so we could check in to our hotel at a decent hour. Then on the way back, we'd depart earlier in the day and be in less of a hurry to get home, so the more scenic drive home was a little consolation prize for the weekend being over. Even on a Sunday afternoon, I did often get stuck in dreadful backups going out through the San Fernando Valley and Thousand Oaks, although I still strongly preferred the US 101 route overall.

That said, even the relatively scenic drive along US 101 is long enough to became a nuisance after a half a dozen trips between SF and LA. And I'm someone who enjoys driving a pursuit in itself. As long as flights and rental cars were reasonably affordable, I'd definitely prefer to fly vs. drive for a short trip between the two cities. For a while, we took advantage of Southwest's no-fee change policy and kept a few cheap, speculative weekend tickets to LA going at all times. If the date approached and we realized we wouldn't be going to LA that weekend, we'd exchange the ticket for another one a few weeks out into the future.

At one point, my wife and I basically relocated to LA for several months to ride out the remainder of my brother's lease on an apartment in Playa del Rey. We left our largest items in storage in the Bay Area but still had multiple carloads of our daily necessities to transport, and we made back-to-back laps up and down I-5 over the course of a few days–since it was the quickest route available. I disliked the I-5 route prior to that move, but I really hated it afterward.

I've taken CA 99 enough times to know it fairly well. One definite advantage (vs. I-5) is the more continuous availability of service (and generally lower gasoline prices) than the sporadic rip-off oases along I-5. But like I-5 (or the New Jersey Turnpike, for that matter), it's a mercenarily straight highway appliance cutting through a rather disenchanting landscape, and I can't say that I enjoyed driving it. (Although it's been a few years since I left California, and some of these agonizing drives might be fun to do again–for nostalgia purposes.)

As to CA 1: Undoubtedly, it offers some of the most breathtaking, gorgeous, magazine-cover-worthy vistas of any highway in North America. It is a roadway that defies all of the superlatives you might attempt to heap upon it. That said, driving it solely for roughly 450 miles between San Francisco and Los Angeles would, in my opinion, be sheer torture. To put it another way, it would be like eating 450 scoops of super premium Ice cream or drinking 450 pints of your favorite artisan craft beer. CA 1 is just too low speed with too many nausea-inducing switchbacks, claustrophobia-inducing shoulders, precipitous cliffs etc. to be tolerable driving for such a long distance.

DTComposer

I've spent about half my driving life living in the Bay Area and visiting in-laws/friends in L.A., and the other half living in Santa Barbara or Long Beach and visiting family/friends in the Bay Area. 4-6 trips every year for nearly 30 years.

I will always prefer US-101 to I-5. More scenic, more cities to get real food along the way, more interesting side trips, and most any time saved on I-5 is lost in L.A. traffic anyhow.

As mentioned above, CA-1 is the most scenic by far, but also the least practical by far. I do often take CA-154. I've done all the major crossings (CA-152, CA-198, CA-46, CA-58, CA-166) and find CA-152 to be the best balance between scenic and drivable.

CA-198 to CA-25 is a great alternative when you have the extra time.

I've only done CA-99 when I've had an intermediate stop in Bakersfield or Fresno (stepsister or sister-in-law). I like the historical nature of the road, but it's not a huge step up from I-5 for me.

All of this said, traveling with a 5-year-old and two dogs usually means take the fastest way possible no matter what, unless I can convince everyone there'll be a beach stop along the way.

kkt

Quote from: Max Rockatansky on July 09, 2020, 08:35:52 PM
CA 198, CA 25, CA 129, CA 1, CA 9, and CA 35.  Maybe CA 130 if I'm felling up for some really twisty roads east of Mount Hamilton. 

:clap:

heynow415

Quote from: mapman on July 10, 2020, 01:34:40 AM
I've done both, and although slower, I much prefer US 101, as it has more scenery that I-5.  However, if you're in a hurry, I-5 is certainly a much better option.

I agree, even if it ends up being a bit longer drive, time-wise.  Back in the late 80's-mid 90's when I was traveling between either the Bay Area or Davis regularly to "the OC" I-5 was the preferred route just to get that drive over with.  At the time I-5 wasn't as clogged with trucks so you could move relatively easily.  Going to school in SLO, taking 101 to the Bay Area or "the" 101 to southern CA was pretty routine but always a nice drive, except for the #%!^ four traffic lights in Santa Barbara. 

Don't do the northern-southern drive nearly as much anymore but now it's more dependent on when I'm going:
- Scenic/relaxed pace drive:  101
- Just need to get there during the day:  580/132/99/5 or 37/80/12/5/4/99/5 (avoid the endless truck-passing plugs on 5) - as others have mentioned with 99 having three lanes for much of it passing is much easier.
- At night or early morning:  580/5
- December-January: 101 (if there's tule fog, driving the valley through hours of that is frightening at best)

I'm one of those who will go miles out of my way as long as I can keep moving, to wit:  during college driving on a Friday afternoon from Capo Beach to SLO, to avoid the 405 morass and then 101 through the valley and Oxnard I would stay on the 5 and then do 57/210/118/126 and join 101 in Ventura.  I'm sure traffic patterns have changed since then but at the time the only congestion was a bit on the 5 though Tustin, at the 57/60 multiplex and then maybe a little bit going through Pasadena.  Of course, there were the four lights in Santa Barbara with limited options around that.  But otherwise, it was at the limit the whole way.

RZF

If you live west of the 405 in the LA Metro area (West SF Valley, Ventura County, Malibu), then the 101 is easily the best option for getting to the Bay Area.

cahwyguy

#17
In many ways, it depends on where in the bay area you are going. If you are going to the South Bay, 101 is preferred, as there are more places to get out and stretch your legs, and it really only adds an hour or so. US 101 also avoids the risk of brush fire or snow in the Tejon Pass. If you are pressed for time, then use I-5. If you are going to the City or East Bay, then I-5 is better, using I-580/I-205, as you avoid the South Bay traffic.  [Edited to fix a typo. Note that, in general, my comments are for someone leaving from the San Fernando Valley or West LA. If you are far East or far South, getting to US 101 may be more trouble than it is worth, although I-5 to Route 126 to Route 101 is good (and in fact, our preferred exit is to take the 118 to 126, and then up 101 ... and always take San Marcos Pass (154).]
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skluth

#18
Fog and dust storms can also create havoc on I-5. It happens on the other routes too, but it seems to be a regular problem in the Central Valley.

jdbx

Quote from: RZF on July 13, 2020, 12:10:51 PM
If you live west of the 405 in the LA Metro area (West SF Valley, Ventura County, Malibu), then the 101 is easily the best option for getting to the Bay Area.

We have friends who live in Newbury Park, and while it is several miles longer, it is consistently faster to take I-5 and then cut across on CA-118 / CA-23.  CA-118 is easily one of my favorite freeways to drive in Southern California for the sake of being fairly scenic and lacking serious congestion.

Max Rockatansky

Quote from: skluth on July 13, 2020, 04:16:48 PM
Fog and dust storms can also create havoc on I-5. It happens on the other routes too, but it seems to be a regular problem in the Central Valley.

The Tule Fog is bad as advertised but kind of tame on I-5 given the higher elevation, on CA 99 it's way worse.  The dust storms definitely don't stack up to what I used to see in the Sonoran Desert of Arizona.  I was surprised that CA 41 was partially shut down for a dust storm the other day south of Fresno because IMO it wasn't that big of a deal.  That was the only dust storm closure I've ever encountered in California. 

SeriesE

Quote from: cahwyguy on July 13, 2020, 03:50:06 PM
In many ways, it depends on where in the bay area you are going. If you are going to the South Bay, 101 is preferred, as there are more places to get out and stretch your legs, and it really only adds an hour or so. US 101 also avoids the risk of brush fire or snow in the Tejon Pass. If you are pressed for time, then use I-5. If you are going to the City or East Bay, then I-5 is better, using I-580/I-205, as you avoid the South Bay traffic.  [Edited to fix a typo. Note that, in general, my comments are for someone leaving from the San Fernando Valley or West LA. If you are far East or far South, getting to US 101 may be more trouble than it is worth, although I-5 to Route 126 to Route 101 is good (and in fact, our preferred exit is to take the 118 to 126, and then up 101 ... and always take San Marcos Pass (154).]

That's true. For people leaving from South OC (especially if it's south of the El Toro Y), for example, getting to either I-5 or US-101 wouldn't be a big deal either way.


There's also I-5 + CA-152 for Bay Area traffic, but I hate the undivided 2 lane segment west of CA-156. The traffic it carries is way above its design capacity.

Max Rockatansky

Quote from: SeriesE on July 13, 2020, 09:20:28 PM
Quote from: cahwyguy on July 13, 2020, 03:50:06 PM
In many ways, it depends on where in the bay area you are going. If you are going to the South Bay, 101 is preferred, as there are more places to get out and stretch your legs, and it really only adds an hour or so. US 101 also avoids the risk of brush fire or snow in the Tejon Pass. If you are pressed for time, then use I-5. If you are going to the City or East Bay, then I-5 is better, using I-580/I-205, as you avoid the South Bay traffic.  [Edited to fix a typo. Note that, in general, my comments are for someone leaving from the San Fernando Valley or West LA. If you are far East or far South, getting to US 101 may be more trouble than it is worth, although I-5 to Route 126 to Route 101 is good (and in fact, our preferred exit is to take the 118 to 126, and then up 101 ... and always take San Marcos Pass (154).]

That's true. For people leaving from South OC (especially if it's south of the El Toro Y), for example, getting to either I-5 or US-101 wouldn't be a big deal either way.


There's also I-5 + CA-152 for Bay Area traffic, but I hate the undivided 2 lane segment west of CA-156. The traffic it carries is way above its design capacity.

152 East of 156 is way beyond it's current design capacity also even though it is an expressway.  The climb to Pacheco Pass almost always has a big wreck when I try to get over it.  I almost always end up swinging south to County Route J1 just to avoid sitting for an hour plus. 

jrouse

We usually take 5 when traveling to Southern California from Sacramento although on our last trip down south we took 99 down and 5 back up.  Like others have mentioned in this thread, the third lane along much of 99 makes a huge difference.

In my previous job I traveled down to San Luis Obispo a couple of times a year.  I would usually take  5-41-46-101 down and 101-156-152-5 back up.  My last trip down there I took 5-152-156-101 down and took 101-41-5 back up.  I won't ever do that return route again; that segment of 41 between Atascadero and the multiplex with 46 at Shandon is far too curvy and slow for me. 

sparker

A couple of years ago I recounted a 1999 trip from Anaheim Hills to Redwood Estates (off CA 17 between Santa Cruz and Los Gatos) without using 1 inch of freeway!.  Don't recall what thread it was in, but once out of metro L.A. it basically used CA 150, CA 33, CA 198, CA 25, CA 129, and local roads connecting the above.   Dig it up if you want more detail.  More recently, my last trip south was with a friend who was taking a piece of very rare audio electronics to a repair facility in Buena Park and who wanted someone riding shotgun.  Starting in Hollister, the trip entailed CA 156, US 101, I-5, I-605, and CA 91 on the main "down" trip, with CA 57 and CA 60 out to the overnight stop in Ontario.  Return (to stop by my storage place in Hesperia and pick up a few items) used I-15, CA 18 (visited a buddy in Apple Valley), US 395, CA 58 (still working on Kramer back then), CA 99, CA 152, and back to Hollister on 156.  For a 2-day "quickie", one of the more satisfying trips I've taken in a while.  My preference has always been CA 99 over I-5 just for the variance in scenery and the mix of rural areas and towns.  US 101 is, of course, more scenic than either Valley option -- but Santa Barbara to L.A. can be an almost 24/7 slog (it sure was on that particular trip; didn't clear up until Thousand Oaks but clogged up again through Hollywood).  Return was a breeze, though.  My friend was impressed with desert driving -- he almost got a ticket coming down the hill on 58 near Edison doing somewhere around 85 -- the CHP flashed lights at him and he slowed down, and the cruiser passed him with the cop giving him a decidedly dirty look!   But he continued doing 99 at between 75 and 80 for the full distance with no incidents (hey, the guy makes $225K a year as an engineer, and really doesn't give a shit since his divorce!).  Nevertheless, all in all a fun trip. 



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