Best Time to Drive from Palmdale to Santa Monica

Right now (7:09 pm PDT): about 70 minutes via SR-14 South and I-405 South, usually 65 at this time.

Only 15% 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 62-mile drive from Palmdale to Santa Monica (via SR-14 South and I-405 South) usually takes as little as 63 minutes and up to 123 minutes, when leaving around 5:30 am on Thursdays. The fastest times to leave are after 9 am. Midday (11 am to 2 pm) it takes about 68 minutes. On weekends it is slowest around 12:30 pm on Saturdays (71 minutes).

About 51 miles of it is freeway, where times follow typical and live traffic from our sensors, and about 11 miles surface streets (15 to 21 minutes on weekdays), estimated from how jammed the freeways around them are at that time. Drive times are measured from central Palmdale to downtown Santa Monica 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 Palmdale to Santa Monica?

On weekdays, leave after 9 am. The drive usually takes about 63 minutes then, versus up to 123 minutes at the worst times.

How long does it take to drive from Palmdale to Santa Monica?

The 62-mile drive usually takes 63 to 123 minutes on weekdays, depending on when you leave, and about 68 minutes midday.

When is traffic worst from Palmdale to Santa Monica?

Leaving around 5:30 am on Thursdays is usually slowest, about 123 minutes.

Freeways on this drive

SR-14 South in Los Angeles (25 miles) · I-405 South in Los Angeles (19 miles) · I-5 South in Los Angeles (3 miles) · I-10 West in Los Angeles (3 miles)

Los Angeles traffic right now · Los Angeles traffic tomorrow

More drives

Santa Monica to Palmdale (return trip) · Palmdale to Los Angeles · Palmdale to Long Beach · Palmdale to Anaheim · Palmdale to Riverside · Palmdale to Santa Ana · Palmdale to Irvine · Palmdale to Oxnard · Palmdale to Moreno Valley · Palmdale to Huntington Beach · Palmdale to Glendale · Palmdale to Santa Clarita

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