Interstate 380 (California)

Interstate 380 marker

Interstate 380
Quentin L. Kopp Freeway
Route information
Defined by Streets and Highways Code § 608
Maintained by Caltrans
Length: 1.670 mi[1] (2.688 km)
Existed: 1964 – present
Major junctions
West end: I280 in San Bruno
East end: US 101 in South San Francisco
Location
Counties: San Mateo
Highway system
SR 371US 395

Interstate 380 (I-380) is a short 1.7-mile (2.7 km) eastwest spur Interstate Highway in the San Francisco Bay Area of Northern California, connecting Interstate 280 in San Bruno to U.S. Route 101 near the San Francisco International Airport (SFO). The highway primarily consists of only three intersections: I-280, El Camino Real (State Route 82), and U.S. 101. Like nearby I-280, I-380 never connects to Interstate 80, its parent Interstate Highway. However, there is no rule that says that spur routes need to. (Similarly, the spur route Interstate 795 branches off from Interstate 695, a beltway around Baltimore, and is only indirectly linked to Interstate 95.)

I-380 is officially known as the Quentin L. Kopp Freeway, named after the prominent Calif. State Senator from San Mateo County. This highway was previously named the Portola Freeway to honor the eighteenth-century Spanish explorer Gaspar de Portolà, whose expedition in 1769-70 discovered the San Francisco Bay, from a viewpoint on the Sweeney Ridge located between San Bruno and Pacifica.

Interstate 380 is part of the California Freeway and Expressway System.[2]

Route description

I-380 begins at a junction with I-280 in San Bruno. This junction is really only partially built, allowing room to build a proposed freeway extension west towards State Route 1 (see below). I-380 then travels east through the City of San Bruno, intersecting with State Route 82, El Camino Real, before reaching US 101.

At its terminus at US 101, the mainline lanes of I-380 continue as North Access Road. Meanwhile, the ramps to and from southbound US 101 provide connections to collector/distributor roads leading directly to San Francisco International Airport, allowing traffic between the Interstate and the airport to avoid merging with the main traffic lanes of US Highway 101.

History

There were plans to extend I-380 all the way to State Route 1 (the Cabrillo Highway), but due to the route's passing over the San Andreas Fault and opposition from members of the local community, this project has yet to be tackled. The westbound lanes of I-380 branch off to the right at I-280, leaving a very wide, paved space which would carry the freeway extension under I-280 towards SR 1. This space is currently often used as storage space for equipment used in highway maintenance. A pair of unused bridges crossing over the I-280 South to I-380 East offramp remain as evidence.

Despite the opposition, Chapter 2, Article 3, Section 608 of the California Streets and Highways Code still legally defines Route 380 as traveling from "Route 1 near Pacifica to Route 280 in San Bruno",[3] and the exit numbers assigned at I-280 go to five instead of one or zero.

Although recent California Highway Log still propose alternative plans to extend the highway in a more peculiar configuration, slightly southwest of the I-280/I-380 interchange. This might make the extension project slightly longer, perhaps bending I-380 a bent V-shape. This concept is still very controversial, and it is unlikely to be undertaken. A somewhat less controversial concept would integrate the current I-280/I-380 and San Bruno Avenue/I-280/Sneath Lane interchanges by extending the I-380 mainline just far enough to allow the frontage roads on each side of I-280 to access (and be accessed by) I-380, allowing travel between I-380, San Bruno Avenue and Sneath Lane.

Exit list

Mileage is measured from the unconstructed western terminus at State Route 1 near Pacifica. The entire route is in San Mateo County.

Locationmi[4]kmExit[4]DestinationsNotes
San Bruno5.478.805 I280 (Junipero Serra Freeway) – San Francisco, San JoseWestbound exit and eastbound entrance; signed as exits 5A (north) and 5B (south); west end of I-380
5.478.805C SR 82 (El Camino Real) San BrunoSigned as exit 5 eastbound
6.23–
6.37
10.03–
10.25
6 US 101 (Bayshore Freeway) – San Francisco International Airport, San Jose, San FranciscoSigned as exits 6A (south) and 6B (north) eastbound
South San Francisco6.6010.627South Airport BoulevardEastern end of I-380; exit ramp from I-380 eastbound and entrance ramps to I-380 westbound and US 101 northbound; access to and from North Access Road via frontage road
6.6010.62North Access RoadFull interchange with I-380 and US 101; access to and from South Airport Boulevard via frontage road
1.000 mi = 1.609 km; 1.000 km = 0.621 mi

References

  1. California Department of Transportation, State Truck Route List (XLS file), accessed February 2008
  2. "CA Codes (shc:250-257)". Leginfo.ca.gov. Retrieved 2013-01-26.
  3. "California codes 300-635".
  4. 4.0 4.1 Warring, KS (January 12, 2009 by). "Interstate 380 Freeway Interchanges" (PDF). California Numbered Exit Uniform System. California Department of Transportation. Retrieved September 1, 2014. Check date values in: |date= (help)

External links

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Interstate 380 (California).

Route map: Bing