'Ridiculous traffic': Drivers cope with Labor Day weekend East Bay I-80 construction closure

ByCornell Barnard KGO logo

Sunday, September 3, 2023

Drivers cope with East Bay I-80 construction closure

A major road repaving project continued this Labor Day Weekend with a stretch westbound Interstate 80 closed in Solano and Contra Costa Counties.

VALLEJO, Calif. (KGO) -- A major road repaving project continued this Labor Day Weekend with a stretch westbound Interstate 80 closed in Solano and Contra Costa Counties.

There's no holiday weekend for some Caltrans workers on the job repaving a five-mile stretch of westbound I-80, from I-780 in Vallejo to SR 4 in Hercules.

"Right now, we're compressing 106 nights of work into four holiday days and nights," said Caltrans spokesperson Vince Jacala.

Caltrans says so far, the major project is on schedule.

There's an extensive detour in place around the work and on Saturday, traffic backups were not far behind.

"Ridiculous, just ridiculous traffic," said Armando Ruiz. Ruiz was heading home to Pittsburg.

"Normally it takes me about 35 minutes to get home. Today it's going to be an hour. That's a pain in the butt," Ruiz said.

There was a backup on the Benicia Bridge and on westbound Highway 37, where it took ABC7 News 20 minutes to go one mile.

"Everywhere you go -- you can't go anywhere without getting into some sort of congestion. Just to go ten miles, it will take you two hours to go," said Michelle Canepa from Vallejo.

Caltrans says it chose Labor day weekend for the project, because traditionally, there's less traffic heading westbound.

Many drivers are happy the road is being repaved. Cindy Frazier says it's a mess.

"Potholes, the lanes weren't clear, there wasn't enough room in the lanes," Frazier said.

Caltrans says westbound I-80 is on track to reopen, at 5 a.m. Tuesday.