Interstate 5/Alternatives

Several segments of Interstate 5 directly replaced U.S. Route 99, which is now decommissioned.

From its southern end near Wheeler Ridge (Exit 221 of I-5) to its northern end at SR 36 in Red Bluff, State Route (SR) 99 follows the Golden State Highway through the densely populated eastern parts of the valley. Cities served include Bakersfield, Delano, Tulare, Visalia, Kingsburg, Selma, Fresno, Madera, Yosemite National Park, Merced, Turlock, Modesto, Manteca, Stockton, Sacramento, Yuba City, and Chico. SR 99 replaces US Route 99 between Wheeler Ridge and Sacramento and US Route 99E from north of Sacramento to Red Bluff (as the Golden State Freeway). Interstate 5 bypasses the Central Valley along its western edge between Wheeler Ridge and Sacramento and parallels the old US Route 99W between Sacramento and Red Bluff as the Westside Freeway.

Historically US Route 99 splits in Sacramento at the present junction of State Route (SR) 99 and US Route 50. US Route 99W goes west from Sacramento to Davis along I-80 (formerly US Hwy 40), from Davis to Woodland on Road 99, and alongside I-5 from Woodland to Red Bluff. The old US Route 99E goes east along I-80/US Route 50 to Roseville. SR-65 from Roseville to Olivehurst; SR-70 from Olivehurst to Yuba City and on the Golden State Freeway (present day CA-99) from Yuba City to Red Bluff. The remaining segments in northern California, to Oregon, have been decommissioned as a US or state highway except SR 273 through Anderson and Redding; SR 263 and a section of SR 96 between Holbrook and Yreka; or as Business Loop (BL) 5 through different towns along the way in northern California. In southern California the old Highway 99 continues east along the present Interstate 10 from Los Angeles to Indio and then SR 86 from Indio to Brawley along the western shores of the Salton Sea. From Brawley to the Mexican border in Calexico the Old Hwy 99 follows SR-111. In everywhere else the Old Hwy 99 exists as local roads/streets named "Old Highway 99", "State Highway 99W", "Golden State", "Road 99" or by a different name from a time before the Golden State Freeway (US Route 99/99E, Los Angeles to Red Bluff) and the Cascade Wonderland Freeway (from Red Bluff to the Oregon border) were built in the 1940s through the 1950s which are described throughout the Interstate 5 articles.

Between Eugene and Grants Pass, I-5 runs concurrent on OR-99. OR-99 runs as separate spur roads through Sutherlin, Roseburg and Winston in separate sections and continuously from Grants Pass (exit 58) to Ashland (exit 14). OR-99 (Rogue Valley Hwy) passes through Grants Pass, Gold Hill, Central Point, Medford, Phoenix, Talent and Ashland as a local surface street. From Ashland to the border with California the Old Hwy 99 follows OR-66 to the south of Emigrant Lake and on OR-273 from Emigrant Lake to the California border. Going north from Cottage Grove, OR-99 goes through Eugene as a series of local streets and north to Junction City where it splits between OR 99E & OR 99W (formerly US Hwy 99E & 99W), through the Willamette Valley, to Portland where they rejoin before crossing the Columbia River into Washington:

Junction City, Halsey, Albany, Salem, Woodburn, Canby, Oregon City, Gladstone, Milwaukie, Portland

Eugene, Albany, Salem, Wilsonville, Portland. I-5 runs concurrent with OR-99E from Albany to Exit 258 in Keizer, north of Salem

Junction City, Corvallis, Amity, Monmouth, McMinnville, Newberg, Tigard, Portland

Unlike California and Oregon only a short segment of Washington's Old Hwy 99 ((47 mi (76 km) long) between Fife and Everett have been commissioned as State Route (SR) 99. The remaining segments of Old Highway 99 run continuously alongside I-5, as a series of separate roads, between Olympia and Vancouver, Washington; Tacoma through Fife; and from Everett to Bellingham as "Old Pacific Highway", "Old Hwy 99", "Pacific Hwy" or by a local name. Some sections have been re-numbered as a different state highway described throughout the article in the below. There have been different alignments and re-alignments throughout its existence before 1940 which are included in some parts of the I-5 articles but not all. Most of the segments described in this article are what is/was there as US Highway 99 when Interstate 5 was built in 1964-1969:

Alternatives for traveling north/south through California include US-Hwy 101, El Camino Real and the Pacific Coast Highway in the west, or US-Hwy 395 along the Eastern Sierra and east of the Cascades in Oregon and Washington. All of these are more scenic and interesting routes but are much longer and slower and are more of a journey to experience than just for getting from A to B. SR-99, US-395, US-Hwy 101 and Old Hwy 99/Pacific Hwy are also local streets/roads at slower speeds through some of the cities and towns they pass through. In some places the de-commissioned "Old Hwy 99" can have a different local street name rather than "Pacific Hwy" or "Old Highway 99". They are all connected to I-5 and each other via various east-west roads in all three states:

• US 97 begins/ends from I-5 in Weed at the south end of US Hwy 97 on the Volcanic Legacy Byway. US Hwy 97 runs parallel with the I-5 corridor to the Canadian border in Oroville WA through Klamath Falls, Crater Lake National Park, Bend, Redmond, The Dalles in Central Oregon; and Yakima, Ellensburg, Wenatchee and North Cascades National Park in Eastern Washington.
• US 101 serves as a coastal route along the west coast from I-5 in Olympia, Washington back to I-5 in downtown Los Angeles, California. It goes north around the Olympic Peninsula & Olympic National Park (via Port Townsend & Port Angeles), along SW Washington Coast, through the Oregon Coast, to Eureka, CA (via Redwood National Park) before going inland (parallel with I-5) while CA-Hwy 1 serves as the coastal highway in California between Eureka and Los Angeles via San Francisco, San Jose, Paso Robles, Santa Barbara, Oxnard, etc. US Hwy 101 is a freeway between San Francisco and Los Angeles and in certain sections between Arcata and San Francisco. North of Arcata, through Oregon and Washington, US 101 is primarily a 2 lane road except in more busier and populated cities it is a 4 lane road but at slower speeds and without the median barriers.
• US 395 begins/ends from I-15 in Hesperia, north of San Bernardino. US Hwy 395 runs parallel with the I-5 corridor, through the remote Majave Deserts and the Sierra Nevada, between Sequoia National Forest and Death Valley National Park towards Carson City and Reno in Nevada. It re-enters California north of Reno and passes through Alturas, Susanville and Modoc National Forest, alongside Lassen Volcanic National Park before crossing into Oregon. It enters Oregon through Lakeview, OR and goes up towards Hermiston through John Day and Pendleton. It crosses the Columbia River along I-82 into Washington (state) to Pasco where it splits from I-82 as a separate road towards Ritzville and along I-90 to Spokane. From Spokane it continues north through Colville, WA and Kettle Falls in Northeast Washington to the Canadian border at Laurier, WA.
• Interstate 205 serves as an auxiliary highway to by pass the Portland Metropolitan Area in Oregon and Washington. It goes 37 mi (60 km) from Tualatin, (south of Portland at Exit 288), through West Linn, Oregon City, Gladstone, Clackamas, and Portland Eastside. It then crosses the Columbia River into Vancouver, Washington and re-joins/splits from I-5 in Salmon Creek, north of Vancouver (exit 7). In California it goes across 13 mi (21 km) from the I-5 corridor in Manteca, south of Stockton (exit 458B) to its other end at I-580, west of Tracy (exit 63). It bypasses Tracy along its north side and serves as local access into Tracy from either I-5 or 580. Traffic continues west on I-580 towards Hayward, through Pleasenton Valley from I-205. Northbound traffic on I-5 going towards Hayward exit at I-580 at exit #448 or Kasson Rd/Business 205 through Tracy at exit 457.
• Interstate 405 serves as an auxiliary highway to go around the three major cities of the three states. In California it goes 72 mi (116 km) from the San Fernando Valley (north of Los Angeles) through or by Van Nuys, Culver City, West Los Angeles, LAX, Westminster, Torrance, Long Beach, John Wayne Airport, Costa Mesa and Irvine where it rejoins to/splits from I-5. In Washington I-405 spans 30 mi (48 km) around Lake Washington, from Tukwila (10 mi (16 km) south of Seattle at Exit 154), through Renton, Bellevue, Kirkland, Bothell, Woodinville and Lynnwood where it re-joins to / split from I-5 north of Seattle. In Oregon I-405 splits from I-5, south of downtown Portland, with I-5 going east on the Willamette River on the Marquam Bridge while I-405 goes 4.2 mi (6.8 km) around downtown to provide local access into downtown and northwest Portland as well as onward connections to/from US Hwy 26 and 30 west. I-405 crosses the Willamette River via the Fremont Bridge and re-joins into I-5 east of the Willamette River, northeast of downtown Portland.
• The old National Park to Park Highway was a pre-1926 circular auto route comprising of various US, interstate and state highways to access several national parks in the western United States. On the west coast the old National Park to Park Auto Trail connected Mt Rainier, Crater Lake, Lassen Volcanic National Park, Yosemite, General Grant National Park, Sequoia National Park and the surrounding national forests from along the present I-5/CA-Hwy 99 in California, Oregon and Washington. Various east-west US, state and local highways connect travelers from the I-5/CA-Hwy 99 corridor into the national parks. The Auto Trail then winds around through Arizona, New Mexico, Colorado, Wyoming, Montana, Idaho and back into Washington (from the east) to access Grand Canyon, Mesa Verde, Rocky Mountain, Yellowstone and Glacier National Park with a branch (roughly I-15 & UT-Hwy 9) of this highway reaching into southern Utah to access Zion National Park. The remainder of the National Park to Park Highway travels on different US, state and intestate highways.
• The Pacific Crest Trail is a continuous 2,650 mi (4,260 km) hiking/trekking trail from Campo, California, near the Mexican border to Manning Provincial Park in British Columbia via marker #78 at the US/Canadian border through the three states. It intersects I-5 at mile marker 1501.2 of the trail in Castella - Castle Crag in Northern California and again at mile 1718.9 in Callahan's - Ashland in Southern Oregon.

Amtrak, ☏ +1 215-856-7924, toll-free: +1-800-872-7245. Operates trains "more or less" along the Interstate 5 corridor serving the major west coast cities. Some segments are further away such as the segment from Emeryville to Oxnard in California while other parts of the route are practically next to the freeway such as the segment between Longview and Centralia in Washington state. The following routes operate along the I-5 corridor: (updated Mar 2022)

• Amtrak Coast Starlight runs once daily between Los Angeles and Seattle via Portland, Klamath Falls, Redding, Sacramento, San Francisco Bay Area, Salinas, Paso Robles, San Luis Obispo, Santa Barbara, Oxnard, Simi Valley and Van Nuys. It shares the same route with the Cascades between Seattle and Eugene, with the same stops (except Tukwila, Vancouver, Washington, and Oregon City); and with the Pacific Surfliner between San Luis Obispo and Los Angeles (see below).
• Amtrak Cascades runs between Seattle and Portland four times daily serving Tukwila, Tacoma, Lacey (Olympia), Centralia and Kelso in Washington state. They run from Seattle to Vancouver via Everett, Stanwood, Mt Vernon & Bellingham twice daily and from Portland to Eugene via Oregon City, Salem & Albany twice daily. Additional service from Seattle to Vancouver and from Portland to Eugene are provided on the Amtrak Thruway Bus.
• Pacific Surfliner San Luis Obispo, Santa Barbara, Oxnard, Los Angeles & San Diego. The segment of this route closest or parallel to the I-5 corridor is between Simi Valley and San Diego. Passengers continue south towards the Mexican border in San Ysidro on the SDMTS 'UC San Diego Blue Line' Trolley from the American Plaza Station, across the street the Santa Fe Station.
• Gold Runner Sacramento, Merced, Stockton, Fresno and Bakersfield. Some trains on this route will go west towards Emeryville and Oakland from Stockton instead of continuing north to Sacramento. This route is then connected to Los Angeles from Bakersfield and from Stockton & Sacramento to Redding by Thruway buses via I-5.

There are several bus companies operating buses along the I-5/CA-Hwy 99 corridor with Greyhound, Flixbus and Fronteras del Norte serving the entire length while other companies operate buses along certain sections of the I-5 corridor in the Pacific Northwest (Oregon or Washington) or California to make the trip possible without a car:

• Greyhound Lines, Flixbus, Cruceros USA, toll-free: +1-800-231-2222. Travels along the entire I-5/CA-Hwy 99 corridor between Tijuana, San Diego, Los Angeles, Sacramento, Portland, Seattle,Vancouver BC and several smaller cities/towns in between each of the above cities. Some of their schedules run contiguously between Seattle and Los Angeles while others break up the trip in Sacramento and/or Portland, requiring a layover or transfer. Cruceros USA is their cross-border shuttle connecting Los Angeles to Tijuana via Santa Ana. 
• BellAir Airporter, toll-free: +1-866-235-5247. Goes up from SeaTac & downtown Seattle to Stanwood, Burlington/Mt Vernon, Bellingham & Blaine on one route and a separate route to Anacortes and the San Juan ferry terminal from Burlington. 
• Cantrail & Amtrak Cascades Thruway Bus, (bus stops) Seattle's King Street Station & Vancouver's Pacific Station. Additional stops at Sandmans Signature Hotel and Pacific Inn in Surrey. No additional stops in the U.S., toll-free: +1-877-940-5561. Operates direct express buses between Seattle and Vancouver, BC $40 for one-way, $75 round trip; discounts for students, military, seniors & children ages 4-11.. 
• Flixbus, ☏ +1 855 626-8585. Travels along the I-5 corridor between Seattle and Eugene on one segment and from San Francisco to Los Angeles on another. (updated May 2020)
• Fronteras del Norte, ☏ +1 323 587-5233. Connects Pasco, Sunnyside & Yakima WA in eastern Washington (state) to Los Angeles and the Mexican border in San Ysidro via Portland, OR. They travel along I-5 between Portland, Los Angeles and the Mexican border in San Ysidro. (updated May 2020)
• Hoang Express, ☏ +1 714 839-3500, toll-free: +1-888-834-9336. Travels between SoCal (San Diego, El Monte, Los Angeles, Westminster) and Sacramento along the I-5 corridor. $60-65 to Bay Area; $80 to Sacramento. 
• International Bus Lines (formerly Intercalifornias), toll-free: +1-888-834-9336. Buses goes up from Tijuana to San Ysidro, Santa Ana, Los Angeles San Fernando, Bakersfield, Fresno, and San Jose/Stockton (route splits/joins in Madero) along the I-5/CA-99 corridor. Prices vary depending on your destination. 
• Lower Columbia CAP, Longview Transit Center, ☏ +1 360 200-4911, +1 360 200-4910. Rural public bus system connecting Longview to Vancouver, WA through Kalama, and Woodland. Connections to Greyhound in Kelso if using this option. $2 Each Way. 
• Oregon Point-Cascade Point Line & Amtrak Cascades Thruway Bus (Operated by MTR Western), ☏ +1 541 484-4100. Bus between Portland, Woodburn, Salem, Albany & Eugene. (updated Apr 2016)
• Oregon Point-Southwest Point (Operated by Klamath Shuttle), ☏ +1 541 883-2609. Connects Brookings to Klamath Falls via Crescent City, Grants Pass, Gold Hill, Medford and Ashland, etc. (updated Dec 2016)
• Quick Shuttle, toll-free: +1-800-665-2122. Runs between Seattle and Vancouver, BC. Stops in Downtown Seattle (outside the Best Western at 200 Taylor Ave N) and SeaTac Airport (at the main terminal near south end of baggage claim, outside door 00, bays 11-16. Provides affordable and reliable transportation from Seatac Airport, Downtown Seattle, Bellingham Airport to Vancouver Airport, Downtown Vancouver and Cruise Ship Terminals. Fares from Vancouver to Downtown Seattle are round-trip; $36 one-way, $65. From Vancouver to SeaTac, fares are $49 one-way, $87 round-trip.. (updated Sep 2022)
• Rapid Connections LLC, ☏ +1 559 442-3000. Buses goes up to Sacramento via San Fernando, Bakersfield, Fresno, Modesto, Stockton and several other places along SR-99; and down to Tijuana via Santa Ana and San Ysidro. (updated Oct 2016)
• Tufesa, ☏ +1 213 489-8079. Connects Los Angeles to Sacramento (via Bakersfield, Fresno, etc); to Salt Lake City (via Barstow, Las Vegas, St George, etc); to Hermosillo (via Phoenix, Tucson, Nogales); San Francisco Bay Area; and to Tijuana (via Santa Ana, San Diego/San Ysidro). Prices vary depending on your destination. (updated Nov 2022)

There are additional express and local buses operating as local public transportation along the I-5 corridor at varying distances in different places. These options are generally cheaper than Greyhound or other intercity carriers for the same distances. See "By bus" under "Get in" and "Get around" in the article of a particular city or locale and under "Get around" in a state article for an additional list of other bus companies serving the west coast.