Best Time to Drive from Bakersfield to Los Angeles

Right now (11:03 pm PDT): about 125 minutes via I-5 South and SR-99 South.

Only 22% of this drive is measured by working traffic sensors right now. The rest is estimated from nearby sensors, typical speeds and street traffic, so times can be off. Why so few sensors work.

About this drive

On weekdays the 112-mile drive from Bakersfield to Los Angeles (via I-5 South and SR-99 South) usually takes as little as 127 minutes and up to 177 minutes, when leaving around 4:30 pm on Mondays. The fastest times to leave are before 5:30 am or after 6 pm. Midday (11 am to 2 pm) it takes about 136 minutes. On weekends it is slowest around 11 am on Saturdays (138 minutes).

About 68 miles of it is freeway, where times follow typical and live traffic from our sensors, and about 44 miles surface streets (65 to 112 minutes on weekdays), estimated from how jammed the freeways around them are at that time. Drive times are measured from central Bakersfield (Truxtun Avenue) to Downtown LA (City Hall) (West 1st Street) along the route on the map. Starting or ending elsewhere in a big city can add or save several minutes.

Simulated from typical freeway speeds at each point of the drive for the time you would reach it, from every 5-minute reading we have recorded. We don't have sensors on surface streets yet, so the time on them is estimated from how congested the freeways around each end of the drive are at that time, in both directions: streets jam when the freeways do.

Questions

What is the best time to drive from Bakersfield to Los Angeles?

On weekdays, leave before 5:30 am or after 6 pm. The drive usually takes about 127 minutes then, versus up to 177 minutes at the worst times.

How long does it take to drive from Bakersfield to Los Angeles?

The 112-mile drive usually takes 127 to 177 minutes on weekdays, depending on when you leave, and about 136 minutes midday.

When is traffic worst from Bakersfield to Los Angeles?

Leaving around 4:30 pm on Mondays is usually slowest, about 177 minutes.

Freeways on this drive

I-5 South in Los Angeles (22 miles) · SR-99 South in Bakersfield (11 miles) · US-101 South in Los Angeles (11 miles) · SR-170 South in Los Angeles (6 miles)

Bakersfield traffic right now · Bakersfield traffic tomorrow · Los Angeles traffic right now · Los Angeles traffic tomorrow

More drives

Los Angeles to Bakersfield (return trip) · Bakersfield to Santa Clarita · Bakersfield to Valencia · Bakersfield to Irvine

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