Best Time to Drive from Sacramento to Pleasanton

Right now (6:17 pm PDT): about 116 minutes via I-5 South and I-580 East, usually 118 at this time.

Only 9% 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 95-mile drive from Sacramento to Pleasanton (via I-5 South and I-580 East) usually takes as little as 90 minutes and up to 133 minutes, when leaving around 5:30 pm on Mondays. The fastest times to leave are before 1:30 pm or after 9 pm. Midday (11 am to 2 pm) it takes about 98 minutes. On weekends it is slowest around 3:30 pm on Saturdays (98 minutes).

About 45 miles of it is freeway, where times follow typical and live traffic from our sensors, and about 51 miles surface streets (10 to 12 minutes on weekdays), estimated from how jammed the freeways around them are at that time. Drive times are measured from downtown Sacramento (the Capitol) to central Pleasanton 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 Sacramento to Pleasanton?

On weekdays, leave before 1:30 pm or after 9 pm. The drive usually takes about 90 minutes then, versus up to 133 minutes at the worst times.

How long does it take to drive from Sacramento to Pleasanton?

The 95-mile drive usually takes 90 to 133 minutes on weekdays, depending on when you leave, and about 98 minutes midday.

When is traffic worst from Sacramento to Pleasanton?

Leaving around 5:30 pm on Mondays is usually slowest, about 133 minutes.

Freeways on this drive

I-5 South in Bay Area (19 miles) · I-5 South in Sacramento (13 miles) · I-580 East in Bay Area (12 miles)

Sacramento traffic right now · Sacramento traffic tomorrow · Bay Area traffic right now · Bay Area traffic tomorrow

More drives

Pleasanton to Sacramento (return trip) · Sacramento to Roseville · Sacramento to Elk Grove · Sacramento to Davis · Sacramento to Folsom · Sacramento to San Francisco · Sacramento to Oakland · Sacramento to SMF · Sacramento to Stockton · Sacramento to Concord · Sacramento to Vallejo · Sacramento to Berkeley

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