Bay Area streets and highways, like those across the country, emptied out overnight when coronavirus shelter-in-place orders were imposed two months ago.
The low point for traffic came in early April when total miles traveled in most Bay Area counties fell by 80% or more from January levels.
But statistics from transportation analysis firm StreetLight Data show that the cars are coming back. Yes, this means more of us are starting to drive again.
A KQED analysis of Friday traffic over the last five weeks finds that miles traveled have increased 60% since the April low point.
That’s still well below "normal" vehicle volumes for the Bay Area. But one sign that more of us are hitting the road: Caltrans activated the Bay Bridge metering lights on Monday — for the first time in two months.
— Dan Brekke (@danbrekke)