Best Time to Drive from San Francisco to Oakland

Right now (4:04 pm PDT): about 17 minutes via I-80 East, usually 20 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 11-mile drive from San Francisco to Oakland (via I-80 East) usually takes as little as 16 minutes and up to 25 minutes, when leaving around 5:30 pm on Mondays. The fastest times to leave are before 6 am or after 9 pm. Midday (11 am to 2 pm) it takes about 19 minutes. On weekends it is slowest around 12 pm on Sundays (21 minutes).

About 6 miles of it is freeway, where times follow typical and live traffic from our sensors, and about 5 miles surface streets (11 to 18 minutes on weekdays), estimated from how jammed the freeways around them are at that time. Drive times are measured from downtown San Francisco (Market Street) to downtown Oakland (Broadway) 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 San Francisco to Oakland?

On weekdays, leave before 6 am or after 9 pm. The drive usually takes about 16 minutes then, versus up to 25 minutes at the worst times.

How long does it take to drive from San Francisco to Oakland?

The 11-mile drive usually takes 16 to 25 minutes on weekdays, depending on when you leave, and about 19 minutes midday.

When is traffic worst from San Francisco to Oakland?

Leaving around 5:30 pm on Mondays is usually slowest, about 25 minutes.

Freeways on this drive

I-80 East in Bay Area (6 miles)

Bay Area traffic right now · Bay Area traffic tomorrow

More drives

Oakland to San Francisco (return trip) · San Francisco to San Jose · San Francisco to Palo Alto · San Francisco to Berkeley · San Francisco to Fremont · San Francisco to Walnut Creek · San Francisco to San Mateo · San Francisco to Hayward · San Francisco to Mountain View · San Francisco to Pleasanton · San Francisco to Santa Clara · San Francisco to Richmond

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