Best Time to Drive from Modesto to Los Altos

Right now (5:49 pm PDT): about 188 minutes via I-580 East and I-680 South, usually 106 at this time.

Only 32% 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 85-mile drive from Modesto to Los Altos (via I-580 East and I-680 South) usually takes as little as 99 minutes and up to 181 minutes, when leaving around 7 am on Tuesdays. The fastest times to leave are after 8 pm. Midday (11 am to 2 pm) it takes about 111 minutes. On weekends it is slowest around 6 pm on Sundays (163 minutes).

About 42 miles of it is freeway, where times follow typical and live traffic from our sensors, and about 42 miles surface streets (47 to 113 minutes on weekdays), estimated from how jammed the freeways around them are at that time. Drive times are measured from central Modesto to central Los Altos 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 Modesto to Los Altos?

On weekdays, leave after 8 pm. The drive usually takes about 99 minutes then, versus up to 181 minutes at the worst times.

How long does it take to drive from Modesto to Los Altos?

The 85-mile drive usually takes 99 to 181 minutes on weekdays, depending on when you leave, and about 111 minutes midday.

When is traffic worst from Modesto to Los Altos?

Leaving around 7 am on Tuesdays is usually slowest, about 181 minutes.

Freeways on this drive

I-580 East in Bay Area (19 miles) · I-680 South in Bay Area (10 miles) · SR-237 West in Bay Area (8 miles) · I-880 South in Bay Area (5 miles)

Bay Area traffic right now · Bay Area traffic tomorrow

More drives

Los Altos to Modesto (return trip) · Modesto to San Jose · Modesto to Hayward · Modesto to Sunnyvale · Modesto to Concord · Modesto to Santa Clara · Modesto to San Leandro · Modesto to Redwood City · Modesto to Pleasanton · Modesto to Alameda · Modesto to Milpitas · Modesto to San Ramon

Open the live traffic map →