Rt 99 Thru Bakersfield

Speaking of western state highways (and maybe this should be in a tread of its own) I found it puzzling that in traveling north last March there are signs suggesting that trucks with trailers stay in the right lane and go slower!
I never obeyed this directive if I was going through.
Seems ridiculous that trucks and trailers stay in a lane where traffic is trying to merge on and exit off.
I have always felt safer in a center lane, maintain the speed of the traffic, and stay out of the way of those trying to get on or off.
These kind of laws must be implemented by people who sit behind desks and not a truck / motor home dash.

#1Flyboy wrote:
That can’t be true as California has the highest taxes and fuel pricing just to keep the roads in perfect condition....

Hmmm .... then I must be getting what I deserve when driving on our CA potholes. :S

(My property taxes are in the basement thanks to Prop 13, and I don't pay any CA income tax. Those two savings easily swamp out our high gas prices.)

MarkTwain wrote:

#1Flyboy wrote:
That can’t be true as California has the highest taxes and fuel pricing just to keep the roads in perfect condition....

You have a perverted or distorted sense of humor:)

that's an example of a new form of humor called 'sarcasm'. :R

Mark Twain, .....What???....( we live near Mark Twain’s “cabin “ on Jackass Hill BTW....

#1Flyboy wrote:
That can’t be true as California has the highest taxes and fuel pricing just to keep the roads in perfect condition....

You have a perverted or distorted sense of humor:)

Seems he is always complaining about something.

Janss wrote:


CA Traveler...I've taken that same route E/W through Bakersfield many times. I read somewhere on this forum about an alternate to 46 between I-5 and 99. I took it a couple years ago and it was a breeze, much less populated, less traffic. I think it might be 7th Standard Rd. I can't remember. Does anyone here know?

The road from I5 to 99 is named Lerdo Highway. You go through Shafter but avoid the bad part of 99.

I used to regularly drive I5/I99 both ways from San Diego to Redding in a 4 door sedan. Both routes ALWAYS have lots of HEAVY long haul truck traffic. IMO/IME, the quality of the roads can change from decent to horrible in just a few weeks and stay that way for months before CALTRANS gets out to do repairs. Often they get so bad that CALTRANS has to let major contracts to repave/repair the roads. The combination of the constant heavy trucks and high rains wreaks havoc on the aging roadways. When water gets under the roadways (through cracks) and heavy trucks pound the surfaces, it pumps the base out from under the pavement and everything goes down the drain in short order.

Chum lee

Depends how far south you want to cross. We have found 8 Mile Road just south of Lodi to be good. Good road, light traffic and not too many lights.

wilber1 wrote:

bob213 wrote:
Seems like every trip we take requires us to go east. 99 to 58 is the best route we have found and we haven't experienced that bad of road doing so. Other than the 3 year plus construction project at the transition of 58 from 99 I think it's pretty good road.

Three years? They have been working on it for at least the last five. It’s like the I5 through Tacoma, a permanent construction zone.

Unbelievably maybe, the SB puyallup River bridge widening going on now is actually the last major project from S Tacoma to Fife!
I build almost exclusively WSDOT work and IMO that area was one of the bigger WSDOT cluster farks. I've bid some of and understand some of the "issues" on that corridor and it was some real mismanagement by WSDOT and Also a great challenge to cram that many lanes, bridges and interchanges through there.
Heck we moved to WA in 2011 and Nalley Valley had already been under const for a while and it will now be done in 2 years....