San Francisco Bay Area

The San Francisco Bay Area, referred to locally as The Bay Area, is the conurbation that surrounds San Francisco Bay in northern California. Home to more than 7 million people, the metropolitan area is composed of cities, towns, villages, military bases, airports, and regional, state, and national parks sprawled over nine counties, connected by a massive network of roads, highways, rail, and commuter rail.

Transportation

Airports

• San Francisco International Airport (SFO)
• :The largest and oldest airport in the region, and a major international hub airport in California second only to LAX (Los Angeles).
• Oakland International Airport (OAK)
• :The second largest airport in the region and a hub for mostly low-cost domestic flights.
• Mineta San Jose International Airport (SJC)
• :The smallest of the major airports. Undergoing a major expansion and renovation to handle more major flights.

Public transportation

Bus

Numerous and often overlapping bus transit agencies service the area: see Muni, AC Transit, SamTrans, VTA, County Connection and Golden Gate Transit

Related Topics:
Muni - AC Transit - SamTrans - VTA - County Connection - Golden Gate Transit

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Light rail

Muni and VTA also operate light rail networks.

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Mass transit

The Bay Area is served by a number of mass transit systems:

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• Bay Area Rapid Transit (BART) - A subway/commuter rail service that serves parts of the Bay Area, including San Francisco, Oakland, Berkeley, Fremont, and Walnut Creek. It has a direct connection to San Francisco's airport while a direct connection to Oakland's airport is in the planning stages.
• Caltrain - A commuter rail service that connects San Jose and cities along the Peninsula with San Francisco, California, and with the BART system by way of the Millbrae Transit Station.
• Amtrak - There are several Amtrak stations throughout the Bay Area. Major stations in Martinez and Emeryville feature Coast Starlight and California Zephyr service. The Starlight also services Oakland and San Jose. The Capitol Corridor connects Bay Area cities to Sacramento, and features a BART transfer station at Richmond.
• ACE - Altamont Commuter Express; a rail service that mainly serves commuters to and from the Central Valley to the Silicon Valley. It travels from Stockton through Pleasanton, Fremont, Santa Clara, and ends at San Jose. It operates only during commute hours on weekdays.

Ferries

Public ferry services cross the bay to serve both commuters and leisure travelers. Operators include Golden Gate Transit, Blue and Gold Fleet, and Red and White.

Related Topics:
Golden Gate Transit - Blue and Gold Fleet - Red and White

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Freeways and highways

The Bay Area possesses an extensive freeway and highway system.

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;Trans-bay crossings

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• Interstate 80 - The western terminus of I-80 is located in San Francisco, just west of the San Francisco-Oakland Bay Bridge. The interstate continues to the east, connecting to Oakland and the north coast of the East Bay, and then on to Sacramento and Reno.
• Interstate 580 - This spur route's western terminus is in Marin County. The Interstate crosses the San Pablo Bay over the Richmond-San Rafael Bridge, passes through Oakland, then continues to Livermore, through the Altamont Pass to Tracy, where it intersects with Interstate 5.
• California State Route 92 - CA-92's western terminus is in Half Moon Bay. The two-lane highway crosses the Santa Cruz Mountains, connecting to Interstate 280 and U.S. Highway 101, becoming a freeway as it passes through San Mateo before crossing the San Mateo-Hayward Bridge to Hayward.
• California State Route 84 - CA-84 begins at the Pacific Coast near San Gregorio State Beach, and crosses the Santa Cruz Mountains on a scenic route between La Honda and Woodside. It then crosses the Bay over the Dumbarton Bridge from Redwood City to Newark. The route then passes through Fremont, continuing as Niles Canyon Road to Sunol and Livermore.

;The Peninsula to the South Bay

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• Interstate 280 and U.S. Highway 101 - Eight-lane and, in some parts, 10-lane freeways connecting San Francisco to San Jose, passing through the Peninsula. Highway 101 continues south to Gilroy and Salinas, California, before continuing to Los Angeles. For most of its route I-280 runs along the foothills of the Santa Cruz Mountains, and is very scenic, while 101 is highly urban and is locally known as "the world's longest parking lot."
• California State Routes 1 and 35 - Two-lane highways also traveling down the Peninsula, CA-1 along the Pacific coast, and CA-35 near the ridge of the Santa Cruz Mountains. CA-1 connects to Half Moon Bay, Santa Cruz, and Monterey, before continuing to Los Angeles.
• California State Routes 17 and 9 - Highways through the Santa Cruz Mountains, connecting the South Bay to Santa Cruz. Part of CA-17 in San Jose is an 8 lane freeway.
• California Routes 237 and 85 - Freeways connecting the west Santa Clara Valley to the east Santa Clara Valley, bypassing Downtown San Jose.
• California State Route 87 - North-south freeway entirely in San Jose, connecting Downtown to the Almaden Valley.
• California State Route 152 - Two-lane highway from Watsonville, crosses the Santa Cruz Mountains to Gilroy, then crosses the Diablo Range through Pacheco Pass to I-5 near Los Banos.
• California State Route 82 - Highway running from San Jose to Interstate 280 in San Francisco. It is designated a State Route, although it is more similar to an inner-city boulevard, and contains either 2, 4, or 6 lanes. Through much of the San Mateo County, it is also known as El Camino Real. It runs from Daly City in the north through the Peninsula and beyond.
• The freeway system in Santa Clara county is augmented by its expressway system.

;North Bay

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• US-101 and CA-1 - Continue north of San Francisco, crossing the Golden Gate Bridge and connecting San Francisco to Marin and Sonoma counties, and eventually to Oregon.
• California State Route 29 - Four-lane expressway connecting Interstate 80 in Vallejo in Solano County to the towns of American Canyon and Napa. North of Napa, SR-29 is a two-lane rural highway through the towns of the Napa Valley, California's Wine Country, to Clear Lake.
• California State Route 37 - Four- and two-lane expressway connecting US-101 in Novato with Interstate 80 in Vallejo, along the northern shore of San Pablo Bay.
• California State Route 12 - A highway connecting Santa Rosa with suburbs to the east and west.

;East Bay

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• Interstates 880 and 680 travel up the East Bay from San Jose, 880 close to the bay to Oakland, and 680 inland from San Jose north through Fremont, Pleasanton and Concord; then crosses the Benicia-Martinez bridge and ends at Interstate 80 in Fairfield.
• Interstate 980 is entirely in Downtown Oakland and begins at Interstate 880 and travels north to become California State Route 24 at Interstate 580.
• California State Route 13, or the Warren Freeway, is entirely in the Oakland Hills and travels north from Interstate 580 to California State Route 24, where the freeway portion ends. Beyond SR 24, SR 13 is Berkeley's Ashby Avenue.
• California State Route 24 begins at Interstate 580 in Oakland and travels east through the Caldecott Tunnel to Interstate 680 in Walnut Creek.
• California State Route 238/Interstate 238 (Mission Boulevard) is an arterial from Fremont to Hayward, along the base of the hills, then becomes a freeway near Oakland.
• California State Route 4 - Western terminus at Interstate 80 in Hercules, travels east through Martinez, Pittsburg, and Antioch, where the freeway portion ends. The highway continues to Brentwood and east to Stockton.