What is the best route from Los Angeles, CA to San Jose, CA?

I would go 5 North to the 580 West to the 680 South. It is definitely the fastest, even though it seems like a bit of a round-about way. I've made this drive many, many times.

You should encounter very little traffic with this route as well as no mountain or back-country driving (except for the Grapevine coming out of LA, which you should definitely check in advance, especially in Winter). You can maintain 80-85 mph the whole way. MapQuest will probably send you the 5 North to the 152 West to the 101 North and claim it to be faster.

The only problem is that they base this on an average speed of just over 60 mph, which we know that nobody is actually driving. In actuality, by going a route that allows you to average 80-85 will save you some time. However, if you are looking for a much more scenic route, than the 101 is the way to go.

Bear in mind though that you will tack on at least an hour to your drive by going that way... I honestly would recommend either the 5 North, 152 West to 101 North way, or the 5 North, 580 West to 680 South way fairly equally. Either will probably get you there in roughly the same amount of time. Just double-check ahead of time for Sig Alerts, Freeway closures and Traffic.

Though Google Maps certainly suggests that the 5 is the quickest way, I've done this drive multiple times, and find the 101 to be a much more pleasant road and not that much longer in terms of time. (Google Maps says it's an extra hour, but if you believe my personal experience it's more like 35 minutes, well worth it in my opinion).

James_bond is right about the 680 being quicker than going via Watsonville. To answer your question: there's really no other practical way to avoid the grapevine. All the other routes either go through different/worse mountains and/or take a lot more time.

The grapevine shouldn't be that bad though. It's got those long cutbacks that are really annoying in the summertime, but make it a lot safer than other routes when there are winter weather issues. You can always check here dot.ca.gov/ for up-to-date info.

They're currently showing "some icy spots ... drive with caution. " Just take it slow and safe through the sketchy parts, but you'll be fine.

No matter how you cut it, the 405-5-152-101 is the best route. I would check CHP reports through the Grapevine. A friend of mine in Valencia was telling me that the road conditions near her neighborhood were icy.So, I would assume the mountains are worse and there is probably at least one lane closed.

If you can, leave at 9, it'll take you 4.5 hours to get to Almaden Valley (South SJ). Otherwise you're looking at least 5.5-6 hours. However, there is no better route, I can assure you.

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