Best Time to Drive from Modesto to Walnut Creek

Right now (6:53 pm PDT): about 106 minutes via I-580 East and I-680 North, usually 99 at this time.

Only 43% 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 72-mile drive from Modesto to Walnut Creek (via I-580 East and I-680 North) usually takes as little as 74 minutes and up to 121 minutes, when leaving around 3 pm on Fridays. The fastest times to leave are before 6:30 am or after 9 pm. Midday (11 am to 2 pm) it takes about 84 minutes. On weekends it is slowest around 6:30 pm on Sundays (111 minutes).

About 41 miles of it is freeway, where times follow typical and live traffic from our sensors, and about 31 miles surface streets (24 to 60 minutes on weekdays), estimated from how jammed the freeways around them are at that time. Drive times are measured from central Modesto to central Walnut Creek 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 Walnut Creek?

On weekdays, leave before 6:30 am or after 9 pm. The drive usually takes about 74 minutes then, versus up to 121 minutes at the worst times.

How long does it take to drive from Modesto to Walnut Creek?

The 72-mile drive usually takes 74 to 121 minutes on weekdays, depending on when you leave, and about 84 minutes midday.

When is traffic worst from Modesto to Walnut Creek?

Leaving around 3 pm on Fridays is usually slowest, about 121 minutes.

Freeways on this drive

I-580 East in Bay Area (25 miles) · I-680 North in Bay Area (16 miles)

Bay Area traffic right now · Bay Area traffic tomorrow

More drives

Walnut Creek 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

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