The portion of U.S. 50 and Business Loop I-80 from West Sacramento to the 29th/30th Street Viaduct and SR 99 in Sacramento is designated by the Federal Highway Administration as Interstate 305. The California Department of Transportation (Caltrans) does not recognize I-305 as an official state route designation since it is not defined in the Streets and Highways Code. It is instead attributed to Legislative Route 50 (LRN 50) for U.S. 50.
I-305 previously included a 2.44 mile section of the Elvas Freeway (SR 51) north from U.S. 50 to the American River beyond C Street.1 It ended beyond the point where the elevated 29-30 viaduct lowered to grade level near C Street. The American River bridge and the remainder of the Business Loop I-80 freeway northeast of there, including the Marconi Curve, were not part of I-305 as the Elvas Freeway does not meet Interstate standards. A new alignment was previously proposed to replace this stretch. It was cancelled by the City of Sacramento in 1979.
Actions by the FHWA on May 15, 1980 resulted in the relocation of I-80 to bypass Sacramento along what was previously Interstate 8802. The Capital City Freeway portion was dropped from the Interstate system east of the exchange with I-5 and SR 99 and reclassified as State Route 51 (FAI 51). The freeway west from SR 99 to I-80 at West Sacramento was established as FAI 305. FAI 305 was then renumbered as a westward extension of U.S. 50, and all of the former I-80 alignment was resigned as Interstate Business Loop 80. FAI 305 was never signed as Interstate 305. However, the FAI designation remains in place.
According to Joe Rouse, Interstate 305 is a federal designation used for funding purposes only. Caltrans refers to it internally as state route 50, and it is primarily signed as U.S. 50 between West Sacramento and the Elvas Freeway, and as Business Loop I-80 northeast from there. The I-305 portion of U.S. 50 is often referred to as the WX, Camellia City Viaduct, or simply as Highway 50. There have never been any plans to sign Interstate 305 in the field, and the California Streets and Highways Code omits the route as well.
- The Dwight D. Eisenhower National System of Interstate and Defense Highways - Route Log and Finder List. November 2002.
- The Dwight D. Eisenhower System of Interstate and Defense Highways: Part V - Interstate Withdrawal-Substitution Program: Withdrawal of I-80 -- Sacramento, California.
Connect with:
Interstate 80
State Route 51
State Route 160
Page Updated 03-11-2019.