Interstate 80 Business
Length:	14.50 mi[1] (23.34 km)
Formed:	1980 by FHWA 1983 (from I-80) by Caltrans[2]
West end:	I-80 in West Sacramento
Major junctions:	I-5 in Sacramento US 50/SR 99 in Sacramento
East end:	I-80/SR 244 in Sacramento
California State Routes < US 50 SR 52 > < SR 299 SR 330 > Unconstructed - Deleted - Freeway - Scenic

Interstate 80 Business, called the Capital City Freeway in its entirety, is a Business Loop of Interstate 80 through Sacramento. As it is state-maintained, unlike most business routes in California, it is assigned route numbers - part of U.S. Route 50 on its western half (5.64 miles/9.08 km), and unsigned State Route 51 on its eastern half (8.86 miles/14.26 km). The full road is a freeway, and carried Interstate 80 until 1983, when the signage and designation of Interstate 80 was transferred to the Beltline Freeway, previously signed as Interstate 880. At that time, the American Association of State Highway and Transportation Officials (AASHTO) assigned the Interstate 305 designation to the west half, which met Interstate Highway standards. However, the California Department of Transportation (Caltrans) has never signed this number, put it on any road signs, or used it internally. (Note: The Federal Highway Administration lists unsigned I-305 as 8.44 miles (13.58 km),^[3] increased from 5.3 miles (8.5 km) in 1999.^[4]

Description

Western section BUS I-80/US 50/I-305

Business 80 begins in West Sacramento at Interstate 80, where I-80 leaves the West Sacramento Freeway onto the Beltline Freeway (which travels north of the Bryte neighborhood, over the Sacramento River, and into the Natomas area). This interchange in West Sacramento is also the current west end of U.S. Route 50 and the west end of the unsigned I-305.

In downtown West Sacramento, Business 80 and US 50 split from the West Sacramento Freeway, which is now locally maintained over the Tower Bridge, but once carried State Route 275. Business 80 crosses the Sacramento River on the Pioneer Memorial Bridge, intersecting with Interstate 5 on the east bank. State Route 99 once ran along I-5 to the north and Business 80 to the east, but this is now signed TO SR 99. After crossing I-5, Business 80 runs on top of an embankment between W and X Streets; this was originally known as the WX Freeway.

At an interchange southeast of downtown Sacramento, Business 80 turns north onto the south end of unsigned SR 51. US 50 continues east, State Route 99 heads south, and the "hidden" I-305 ends. The embankment carrying Business 80 east of downtown is between 29th and 30th Streets, and was known as the Elvas Freeway. Northeast of downtown, Business 80 crosses the American River before merging with the North Sacramento Freeway (the northern portion of State Route 160 towards downtown).

Eastern section BUS I-80/SR 51

The North Sacramento Freeway, originally a portion of U.S. Highway 40, merges with the Elvas Freeway and continues north to Marconi Avenue. This portion of Interstate 80 was at one time designated to be bypassed by a newer version of Interstate 80, but that planned route along the western side of the Southern Pacific railroad tracks was cancelled by the City of Sacramento. The North Sacramento Freeway becomes the Roseville Freeway at the curve north of Marconi Avenue(Marconi Curve) (where the freeway once ended at Auburn Boulevard). At the east end of Business 80, the Roseville Freeway continues northeast to Roseville as Interstate 80, while the short unsigned State Route 244 heads east to Auburn Boulevard. I-80 heads west around the north side of Sacramento; the built portion of the never completed North Sacramento Freeway replacement, in the median of I-80, now serves as parking and access for the northernmost three stations (Watt/I-80, Watt I-80 West, and Roseville Road) on the Sacramento Regional Transit District's light rail Blue Line.

History

Business 80 was part of Interstate 80 until the early 1980s, with the actual signage change occurring in 1983. The replacement for the North Sacramento Freeway was cancelled in 1979, and in 1980 the Federal Highway Administration removed it from the Interstate Highway System, redesignating the west half of the Capital City Freeway (which met Interstate Highway standards) as I-305. The east half was designated Federal Aid Primary 51. The next year, the California State Legislature extended U.S. Route 50 west to cover the west half of old I-80, and the east half was assigned the new SR 51 number (last used in 1965 for a short route in Orange).^[2] (The Interstate 880 designation, which had been used for the Beltine Freeway, was reused in 1984 for the Nimitz Freeway in the east bay communities of the San Francisco Bay Area.)

The old I-80 was never signed as US 50 (alone) or SR 51, but as a business route. Unlike most business routes in California, which run along locally-maintained streets through a downtown area, Business 80 was not assigned to the pre-freeway alignment of U.S. Route 40, but to a freeway. The existence of two freeways, both numbered 80, has caused some confusion, and in 1996 the full route was given the Capital City Freeway name. This name appears on overhead signs at prominent interchanges.

An earlier State Route 51 was defined on July 1, 1964 on a section of pre-1964 Legislative Route 2, providing a loop east of Interstate 5 (pre-1964 Legislative Route 174 there) through Orange, around the Orange Crush Interchange. It was removed from the state highway system in 1965.^[5][6]

Route confusion

Business 80 is referred to as Business 80, Biz 80, Capital City Freeway, and US 50 (western section only) by residents and mapmakers. Caltrans does not normally use the Business 80 designation, except for signage and other related concepts like Cal-NExUS exit numbers (which are continuous along the business loop). Caltrans refers to the western half as US 50 and the eastern half as SR 51 for traffic condition reporting. The Caltrans traffic camera system refers to the route by its name, Capital City Freeway.

The SR 99 concurrency is not officially designated by Caltrans, but mapmakers often show it as such. SR 99 signage had existed along that route for motorists' convenience, but was removed in 2000, and replaced by TO SR 99 signs instead.

Control cities

Eastbound

• South Lake Tahoe - from the western intersection with Interstate 80 to Route 99
• Reno - from Route 99 to the eastern intersection with Interstate 80

Westbound

• Sacramento - from the eastern intersection with Interstate 80 to Route 160
• San Francisco - from Route 160 to Interstate 80

Exit list

Mileposts derived from^[1] and exit numbers derived from.^[7]

County	Location	Postmile		#	Destinations	Notes
		County	Statewide
Western terminus of () BUS I-80/US 50 (I-305). Traffic defaults onto I-80 west.
Yolo	West Sacramento	YOL 0.00			I-80 west – San Francisco	Westbound exit and eastbound entrance
		YOL 0.00		1A	I-80 east – Reno	Westbound exit and eastbound entrance
		YOL 1.20		1B	Harbor Boulevard	Exit 1 eastbound
		YOL 2.15 YOL 2.30 YOL 2.49		3	( SR 84 / SR 275 ) Jefferson Boulevard - Downtown Sacramento; West Sacramento	Eastbound exit to, and westbound entrance from, SR 275; secondary westbound exit to, and eastbound entrance from, South River Road
Sacramento	Sacramento	SAC 0.35	3.51	4A	I-5 to SR 99 north – Los Angeles, Redding
				4B	Downtown; 5th Street	Eastbound exit and westbound entrance
		SAC 0.96	4.12	4B	Downtown; 10th Street	Westbound exit accessible via W Street; eastbound entrance accessible via X Street
		SAC 1.37 SAC 1.45	4.53 4.61	5	15th Street/16th Street
		SAC 2.48 SAC 0.00	5.64	6A	US 50 east – Placerville, South Lake Tahoe	US 50 joins westbound and leaves eastbound
				6B	SR 99 south – Fresno
		Split from US 50 (Eastern terminus of I-305. Western terminus of SR 51.)
				6C	T Street	Eastbound exit and westbound entrance. Cal-NExUS currently lists this exit under Bus 80 but these ramps can only be accessed from SR 99; they split from SR 51 before the ramps from US 50 east merge.
				6C	P Street	Westbound exit and eastbound entrance
				7A	N Street	Eastbound exit and westbound entrance
				7A	J Street	Westbound exit and eastbound entrance
		SAC 1.15	6.79	7B	H Street	Eastbound exit and westbound entrance
		SAC 1.44	7.08	7B	E Street	Westbound exit accessible via 29th Street; eastbound entrance
		SAC 3.36	9.00	9A	Cal Expo (Exposition Boulevard)
		SAC 4.09 SAC 4.18	9.73 9.82	9B	SR 160 – Downtown Sacramento	Westbound exit and eastbound entrance
		SAC 4.04	9.68	10A	Arden Way; To SR 160	Exit 9B eastbound
		SAC 4.74	10.38	10B	El Camino Avenue – Carmichael	Exit 10 eastbound
		SAC 5.50	11.14	11	Marconi Avenue; Auburn Boulevard	Westbound exit accessible via Connie Drive
				12A	Howe Avenue	Eastbound exit and eastbound entrance
				12B	Bell Street; Auburn Boulevard	Eastbound exit only
		SAC 6.79	12.43	12C	Fulton Avenue	Exit 12 westbound; eastbound exit accessible via Auburn Boulevard
		SAC 7.98	13.62	14B	Watt Avenue	Split between Exits 14A (South, accessible via Auburn Boulevard) and 14B (North) eastbound
		SAC 8.52	14.16	14C	( SR 244 ) Auburn Boulevard	Exit 14A westbound; first Cal-NExUS sign posted was westbound here
		SAC 8.86	14.50		I-80 east – Reno	Eastbound exit and westbound entrance
Eastern terminus of () BUS I-80 (SR 51). Traffic defaults onto I-80 east.

See also

• Interstate 80 in California
• Interstate 80 around Sacramento, California

References

External links

• WestCoastRoads - Business Loop I-80 Sacramento
• The Highwayman's Road Reports - Elvas Freeway, North Sacramento Freeway and West Sacramento Freeway

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