NorCal Dis-ers, I5 or 99 at Xmas

[StormyCA]

BFF and I left her from her house in Santa Rosa and hit I5 to DL the day after Xmas last year, left around 1pm. Hoo-boy! What a nightmare!!! It took us 10 hours to get from her house to Lebec where we spent the first night. We had NO idea!

We're thinking of going again this year, same scenario. I know, I know, but it's based on her vacay time from work.

So my question is, is Hwy99 just as much of a mess as I5 the day after Xmas, traffic-wise? I live in the Sac'to area so we could just as easily start the trip from my house and hit 99.

Is I5 such a nightmare all day or only towards afternoon/evening-ish? We could theoretically leave as early as 10am.

thanks!

 

[Malcon10t]

I use 99 myself, but heading out to I5 would add 20-30 mins to my trip. It typically takes me 5 hours to make DLR from Modesto, so I would guess it would take you an additional 90 mins. 10 hours from Santa Rosa to Lebec? Sounds crazy!

That said, we usually leave Modesto about 3p on Fridays and traffic is easy.

 

[StormyCA]

I use 99 myself, but heading out to I5 would add 20-30 mins to my trip. It typically takes me 5 hours to make DLR from Modesto, so I would guess it would take you an additional 90 mins. 10 hours from Santa Rosa to Lebec? Sounds crazy!

That said, we usually leave Modesto about 3p on Fridays and traffic is easy.

Yeah, it's usually a 7 hour drive from either her house or mine to DL whether we take I5 or 99 as we're both equal distance to the Parks from our houses (440 miles) so we take either one depending on how we're feeling. But 12/26 we were in slow and go traffic and multiple 'sit and waits' on I5 all the way from a bit north of Santa Nella to Lebec. NO accidents, just those inexplicable backups then go. There were even those temp CalTrans signs that said "Caution...Holiday Traffic...Expect Delays".

I vowed 'never again' but you know how it is when someone says 'Do you want to go to Disneyland?', common sense flies out the window.

 

[ParkHopper1]

I used to drive Bay Area to Vegas via I5 and 58 several times a month...Day after any Holiday traffic is a mess in the afternoon. If you leave early you will be fine on I5 but by late morning to lunch time everyone starts heading home from the Holiday.

99 will be a bit better but still a cluster.

Leaving Sac at 10a I think you will still hit a good chunk of that traffic. I would go earlier if you could.

 

[boggerbret]

We live in Gualala which is up the Coast from you, And we left here are 2AM for disney and where in the park by 11 am! But coming home on a sunday afternoon up i5 Sucked big time! Leave as early as possible is my new game plan.

 

[ashley0139]

I would just check Google Maps before you head out and see which one looks better for traffic.

 

[Jaylens Papa]

99 north at Tulare almost all the way to Fresno is perpetual road construction. Not sure what is happening in Dec. but it seems to be going on all the time.
Week night closures and late morning reopenings. Sometimes only one lane is open and miles of backups.

 

[Malcon10t]

99 north at Tulare almost all the way to Fresno is perpetual road construction. Not sure what is happening in Dec. but it seems to be going on all the time.
Week night closures and late morning reopenings. Sometimes only one lane is open and miles of backups.

We've been fortunate then. We usually leave as soon as school is out and head south on 99. Rarely have a problem. When we do, it is an accident.

 

[StormyCA]

Thanks all! Sounds like there's not much to choose from then on the day after Xmas. Hopefully we'll be able to get away earlier than 10 am. That sounds like the key.

Such a difference from our usual cruise down 5 or 99!

 

[pblack]

I'd definitely leave early...like 6 or 7 AM early...to avoid the rush of traffic. I live in Sac also and we generally take 5 going down. But like someone else suggested you could check Google Maps before leaving and make your decision then.

But if possible...leaving earlier is always better.

 

[gottalovepluto]

I second checking Google Maps right before departure! It has saved us hours in traffic when one of the freeways down here gets backed up! (99 always seems like a mess to me, but I don't drive it around Xmas- so I can't help compare the two )

 

[agamble]

99 north at Tulare almost all the way to Fresno is perpetual road construction. Not sure what is happening in Dec. but it seems to be going on all the time.
Week night closures and late morning reopenings. Sometimes only one lane is open and miles of backups.

We didn't experience any road work on our recent trip to Las Vegas, we made great time actually. Perhaps it was because it was the weekend.

For OP, I say leave EARLY, especially around a holiday like that.

 

[StormyCA]

I second checking Google Maps right before departure! It has saved us hours in traffic when one of the freeways down here gets backed up! (99 always seems like a mess to me, but I don't drive it around Xmas- so I can't help compare the two )

The problem is that our departure point is different depending on which road. If I5, we can leave from BFF's house. If 99 we leave from mine. Changing routes at point of departure adds a good deal of time to the trip.


We usually leave the day before around 2-3pm and stay in Lebec which is about a 5.5 hour drive. We hit up USH the next day and finish the trip to Anaheim when we're done there. But sounds like we'll have to leave early on the day after Xmas no matter which route we take.