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December 2005 / January 2006

Morning Bay Bridge Approach Still Top Hot Spot

Brake lights could be proof that the Bay Area economy has begun to bounce back from the high-tech meltdown of recent years. Traffic congestion on local freeways increased last year for the first time since 2000, according to the latest data released by MTC and Caltrans District 4.

The daily number of vehicle hours of delay due to congestion in the nine-county region rose by 2 percent in 2004, after dropping 18 percent in 2003, 5 percent in 2002 and 12 percent in 2001.

“A brighter employment picture put more workers onto Bay Area freeways last year,” said MTC Executive Director Steve Heminger.

The morning approach to the Bay Bridge on Interstate 80 in the East Bay remained the region’s most notorious congestion location in 2004 — with daily vehicle hours of delay up a whopping 53 percent from 6,570 hours in 2003.

The afternoon trip back home to the East Bay claimed two more slots on the top 10 list. The San Francisco approach to the Bay Bridge came in as number 4, while the afternoon commute across the Bay Bridge (along eastbound Interstate 80 from west of the Yerba Buena Island tunnel out past the Powell Street exit in Emeryville) came in as number 10.

Interstate 580 in Alameda County is another corridor with multiple high-congestion segments. The morning drive westbound from North Flynn Road at the top of the Altamont Pass to Airway Boulevard in Livermore ranked second on the Bay Area congestion list for 2004, while a segment along the afternoon drive back home — from Hopyard Road in Pleasanton to El Charro Road — came in as number 3.

Regionwide, vehicles typically spent 124,190 hours per weekday in congested conditions (defined as average speeds below 35 miles per hour for 15 minutes or longer) on Bay Area freeways in 2004. While this marks a 2 percent increase over 2003 figures, it is far below the 177,600 hours per day recorded in 2000 at the height of the region’s technology-charged economic boom.
— John Goodwin

Top 10 Bay Area Congestion Hot Spots

Ranking of Commute-Period Bottlenecks Along Freeways, 2004
(Number 1 indicates the most congested freeway)

2004 Rank Location
(numbers correspond to map) 		2004 Daily (Weekday) Vehicle Hours of Delay 2003 Rank
1 Interstate 80, westbound, a.m.
Alameda/Contra Costa County
State Route 4 to Bay Bridge metering lights
10,080
1
2 Interstate 580, westbound, a.m.
Alameda County
North Flynn Road to Airway Boulevard
5,120
3
3 Interstate 580, eastbound, p.m.
Alameda County
Hopyard Road to west of El Charro Road
4,320
3
4 U.S. 101, northbound, and Interstate 80, eastbound, p.m.
San Francisco
Cesar Chavez Street to west end of Bay Bridge
3,840
2
5 Route 92, eastbound, p.m.
Alameda County
Clawiter Road to Interstate 880 interchange
3,760
15
6 Route 4, westbound, a.m.
Contra Costa County
Lone Tree Way to west of Loveridge Road
3,600
5
7 U.S. 101, southbound, a.m.
Marin County
North of Route 37 to Interstate 580
3,110
6
8 U.S. 101, northbound, p.m.
Marin County
Route 1 to north of Interstate 580
2,680
20
9 U.S. 101, northbound, a.m.
Santa Clara County
Interstate 280 to north of Trimble Road
2,560
14
10 Interstate 80, eastbound, p.m.
San Francisco/Alameda County
West of Treasure Island to east of Powell Street
2,430
18
Notes: Rankings are for routes in which continuous stop-and-go conditions occur with few, if any, breaks in the queue. Thus, corridors that have equally severe delays, but where congestion is broken into several segments, may rank lower in this type of congestion listing. Congestion is defined as average speeds below 35 miles per hour for 15 minutes or more.
Source: Metropolitan Transportation Commission, Caltrans District 4

Daily Freeway Delay by Bay Area County, 2000–2004

Freeway Miles*
Daily (Weekday) Vehicle Hours of Delay
Percent Change
  2000 2001 2002 2003 2004 2003–2004 2000–2004
Alameda
138
61,700
65,600
61,300
46,300
50,540
+9%
–18%
Contra Costa
87
16,200
18,800
19,400
18,700
18,520
–1%
+14%
Marin
28
9,900
7,900
8,400
6,200
7,410
+20%
–25%
Napa
5
0
0
0
0
0
0%
0%
San Francisco
19
12,500
8,500
11,400
11,200
8,860
–21%
–29%
San Mateo
73
18,100
10,900
7,700
7,300
7,800
+7%
–57%
Santa Clara
137
51,700
37,000
31,600
24,300
22,910
–6%
–56%
Solano
79
3,200
2,400
3,700
2,600
2,830
+9%
–12%
Sonoma
55
4,300
4,400
4,400
5,200
5,320
+2%
+24%
Bay Area Totals
621
177,600
155,500
147,900
121,800
124,190
+2%
–30%

*As of 2004
Source: Metropolitan Transportation Commission, Caltrans District 4

The freeway congestion statistics are excerpted from Bay Area Transportation: State of the System 2005, a joint project of MTC and Caltrans District 4.

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