I-80 Closure: What to Know About Travel Through San Francisco This Weekend

Bay Area residents hoping to cruise through the city to Oakland this weekend may want to ditch their cars and hop on public transit, as a key stretch of eastbound Interstate 80 through San Francisco will be closed to traffic from Friday night through early Monday.

Motorists are strongly advised to avoid the area around I-80 in San Francisco and the interchange with U.S. Highway 101 for the entire weekend of April 17–19. For those committed to driving, expect heavy delays and budget extra travel time, Caltrans said.

“We are trying to get the motorists to just avoid that area and choose not to drive. And if they do drive, to use one of the detours,” said Lori Shepherd, Caltrans’ public information officer for San Francisco County. “That would be really a great way to save themselves a lot of headaches.”

The closures are part of what Caltrans calls “The Fab Rehab,” the agency’s ongoing repair of crucial viaducts near downtown, where I-80 intersects with U.S. 101 near the San Francisco–Oakland Bay Bridge.

Keep reading for what to know about the I-80 closure and how it could affect your weekend.

• Jump straight to: How could the Bay Bridge be affected by the I-80 closure?

What part of I-80 will be closed this weekend?

Caltrans has planned a full weekend closure of about 1.6 miles of eastbound I-80, from 17th Street to 4th Street.

The connector ramps from northbound U.S. 101 at 17th Street and southbound U.S. 101 near Bryant Street will also be closed.

For motorists traveling north on U.S. 101 through San Francisco, approaching the I-80 connector, Vermont Street will be the final exit.

Those who miss Vermont will be directed to take the 9th Street off-ramp and redirected through Bryant Street to reenter eastbound I-80 at the 5th Street on-ramp.

(Drivers should only take the 5th Street on-ramp if they wish to get onto the Bay Bridge, as there are no more exits to San Francisco on this part of eastbound I-80.)

When exactly will the I-80 closure start and end?

The 55-hour closure will start at 11:00 p.m. Friday, April 17, and end at 6:00 a.m. Monday, April 20.

While you may see trucks and maintenance crews entering the site beforehand, work doesn’t begin until the posted time, Shepherd said.

@kqednewsBay Area residents hoping to cruise through the city to Oakland this weekend may want to ditch their cars and hop on public transit, as a key stretch of eastbound Interstate 80 through San Francisco will be closed to traffic from Friday night through early Monday. Motorists are strongly advised to avoid the area around I-80 in San Francisco and the interchange with U.S. Highway 101 for the entire weekend of April 17–19. For those committed to driving, expect heavy delays and budget extra travel time, Caltrans said. “We are trying to get the motorists to just avoid that area and choose not to drive. And if they do drive, to use one of the detours,” said Lori Shepherd, Caltrans’ public information officer for San Francisco County. “That would be really a great way to save themselves a lot of headaches.” The closures are part of what Caltrans calls “The Fab Rehab,” the agency’s ongoing repair of crucial viaducts near downtown, where I-80 intersects with U.S. 101 near the San Francisco–Oakland Bay Bridge. For the full guide on the closure, visit kqed.org.♬ original sound – KQED News

How much could the Bay Bridge be affected by the I-80 closure?

To be clear, the Bay Bridge will be open — but getting to it through San Francisco will be a traffic nightmare.

Westbound I-80 will not be closed, so although people exiting the Bay Bridge into San Francisco will not have their routes affected by the closure, they’re still likely to face increased traffic in the area.

What detours and alternative routes are recommended during the I-80 closure?

For a detour from southbound U.S. 101 to eastbound I-80, people can take Folsom Street through SoMa to the Essex Street eastbound I-80 on-ramp.

From northbound U.S. 101, take the 9th Street-Civic Center exit. Continue straight onto Bryant Street, then take the 5th Street eastbound I-80 on-ramp onto the Bay Bridge.

Who will be most affected by the I-80 closure?

Caltrans said roughly 55,000 cars typically use that stretch of freeway during peak weekend hours, from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m.

While Shepherd emphasized that everyone driving into San Francisco and using its high-traffic arteries south of Market Street that weekend will run into detours and heavy traffic, he said the following travelers will likely be most affected:

• People coming up from the Peninsula and the South Bay
• Those heading across the Bay Bridge
• Travelers heading north from San Francisco International Airport

Since the eastbound I-80 closure will last until 6 a.m. Monday, April 20, the earliest commuters traveling on the Bay Bridge and through the city that morning could find themselves affected by the final hours of the closure.

Will public transit be affected by the I-80 closure?

No, public transit will not be affected, although BART, Caltrain, Muni and SamTrans could see higher-than-usual ridership with drivers avoiding the roads that weekend.

Michael Roccaforte, a spokesperson for the San Francisco Municipal Transportation Agency, emphasized that Muni Metro will be travelers’ best option for a “fast and easy trip” through SoMa, using the T Third/Central Subway or N Judah lines between the Caltrain depot at 4th and King streets, and the Market Street Subway.

“The SFMTA will be ready to support people traveling in the city during the Caltrans closures,”  Roccaforte said. “SFMTA parking control officers will be out directing traffic to keep pedestrians and traffic moving safely.”

BART also canceled planned single-tracking scheduled to replace lighting in order to open up trains for travelers who decide to commute in and out of the city that weekend, spokesperson Anna Duckworth said.

Randol White, a SamTrans spokesperson, said the closures are not expected to affect any weekend routes. However, “diversions from the closures could cause heavy traffic for our Route 292, which follows Mission Street through the affected area. Folsom Street is the suggested detour for drivers, but some of that extra surface street traffic could spill over to Mission.”

What parts of San Francisco will be most affected by traffic from the I-80 closure detours? How bad could traffic get?

Significant congestion and heavy travel delays are expected across SoMa, Mission Bay and surrounding corridors.

The severity of those delays, Shepherd warned, will depend on how many people choose to drive and use the detours — “which is why we’re really, really urging motorists that weekend not to be in that area and to use public transportation.”

“We’ve got a wonderful public transportation system, with BART and Bay ferries and Muni,” Shepherd said.

What public events are happening in the Bay Area that weekend that could be affected by the I-80 closure?

While there are no home games for the Giants, Warriors or Valkyries that weekend, there are a host of other events that could draw major crowds.

It’s the last weekend of the beloved Northern California Cherry Blossom Festival in Japantown, including the Sunday grand parade. At the same time, San Francisco will host the annual Art Fair at Fort Mason.

And while San Francisco’s official 4/20 celebration on Hippie Hill has been canceled for the third year in a row, the party is far from over — the city has reintroduced the festivities as SF Space Walk, a week of events culminating with a celebration at Divisadero Street dispensary Basa SF and an afterparty at barcade Emporium on Monday.

What’s the reason for the closure?

Maintenance crews will place polyester overlays and a new bridge joint onto the viaducts, which were originally built 71 years ago.

The project is part of a larger series of renovations Caltrans is spearheading throughout San Francisco, which began in October 2025.

These include four major corridors:

• 19th Avenue Repave: Rehabilitation of the entire length of pavement along 19th Avenue from Golden Gate Park to San Francisco State University, and upgrading facilities to ADA standards.
• U.S. 101 Bayshore Rehabilitation Project: Improvements to the drainage systems; lane replacement with reinforced concrete paving and paving of freeway shoulder, ramps and mainline; and addition of new signage/striping/safety devices.
• I-80 Central Freeway/U.S. 101 Viaduct Project: An overhaul of freeway decks and bridge rails, reconstruction of joints and addition of polyester overlay.
• I-280 at Farallones Street Pedestrian Overcrossing Rehabilitation: Construction of a new pedestrian overcrossing at Interstate 280 near Cayuga Park.

Shepherd said the projects are necessary to make the structures usable for the next half-century.

“These are all … desperately needed to bring these structures up to code,” Shepherd said. “They’ve been strong and reliable for many, many years, but it’s time now to go and make sure that they’re rehabilitated.”

The first two projects are already underway, and the closures next weekend kick off the reconstruction of the viaduct project. The pedestrian overpass reconstruction is expected to start later this year.

As part of these improvements, overnight lane closures will continue through October 2026 on U.S. 101 and I-80.

Work is scheduled nightly from 10:00 p.m. to 6 a.m. During those hours, lanes 1 and 2 between U.S. 101 and the 4th Street/Bryant off-ramp will be closed, leaving one lane open for traffic. Drivers should expect reduced speeds, possible delays and shifting traffic patterns through the work zone.

Why is this closure taking place over this weekend?

Shepherd said Caltrans considered high-traffic events, school holidays and weather forecasts to determine a time when travelers would be least affected by the closure.

“Everyone loves San Francisco, so people are coming here all the time,” Shepherd said. “We just want them to be aware for this particular weekend to consider public transportation and consider another way to get in and get around.”

KQED’s Ted Goldberg, Carly Severn, Ayah Ali-Ahmad and Azul Dahlstrom-Eckman contributed to this report.