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Trip from Berkeley, CA to Fremont, CA

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Compiled and reviewed by the US Trip Planner planning team at COD Solutions Oy · Last reviewed Apr 21, 2026 · Editorial standards

Drive Time

44m

Distance

31.5 mi

51 km

Drive Score

6/10

Good drive

Same Day?

Yes, doable

Fuel Cost

$7

one way

EV Charging

Unknown

Best Time to Leave

Save up to 11 min
4 AM
0h 41m ★
6 AM
0h 44m
8 AM
0h 52m
10 AM
0h 47m
12 PM
0h 46m
3 PM
0h 47m
5 PM
0h 51m
8 PM
0h 42m

Estimated drive times based on typical traffic patterns. Actual times may vary with weather, construction, and real-time conditions.

city in Alameda County, California, United States

Berkeley, CA

Wikimedia Commons

Trip Overview

Berkeley to Fremont is 31.5 miles and takes about 44 minutes via I 880, with a fuel budget near $7 and enough daylight to finish in a day. This short trip stays within California's Pacific Coast region, making it a simple hop between two Bay Area cities. You'll be on the freeway for most of the drive, so expect a straightforward commute rather than a scenic exploration. It's a practical option for connecting these two points efficiently.

Main Roads

Road Distance Duration
I 880 13.6 mi 14m
Nimitz Freeway 10.4 mi 12m
Martin Luther King Junior Way 2.3 mi 7m
Mowry Avenue 1.6 mi 3m
John B. Williams Freeway 1.4 mi 1m
Grove Shafter Freeway 0.6 mi <1m
Adeline Street 0.3 mi <1m
University Avenue <0.1 mi <1m
Longest stretch: I 880 — 13.6 mi, about 14m

Turn-by-Turn Driving Directions

Step-by-step road directions between Berkeley, CA and Fremont, CA.

1

Start on University Avenue

77 ft · 9 sec · University Avenue
2

Turn left onto Martin Luther King Junior Way

1.4 mi · 4 min · Martin Luther King Junior Way
Use the left lane.
3

Turn straight onto Adeline Street

0.3 mi · 53 sec · Adeline Street
4

Continue on Martin Luther King Junior Way

0.8 mi · 2 min · Martin Luther King Junior Way
Use the straight / right lanes.
5

Keep slight left at fork onto Martin Luther King Junior Way

222 ft · 6 sec · Martin Luther King Junior Way
Toward CA 24: Downtown Oakland, San Francisco, Hayward Use the straight / slight right lanes.
6

Take the ramp

0.2 mi · 25 sec
Toward CA 24 West: Downtown Oakland, San Francisco, Hayward
7

Keep slight right at fork

0.5 mi · 1 min
Toward I 980: Downtown Oakland Use the slight right lane.
8

Merge onto I 980

0.6 mi · 41 sec · Grove Shafter Freeway
Use the straight / slight right lanes.
9

Continue on I 980

1.4 mi · 1 min · John B. Williams Freeway
Use the straight / slight right lanes.
10

Keep slight left at fork

0.4 mi · 36 sec
Exit 1A Toward I 880 South: San Jose
11

Merge onto I 880

10 mi · 12 min · Nimitz Freeway
Use the straight / slight right lanes.
12

Keep slight left at fork onto I 880

5.6 mi · 6 min · I 880
Use the slight left lane.
13

Keep slight left at fork onto I 880

2.4 mi · 2 min · I 880
Use the slight left lane.
14

Keep slight left at fork onto I 880

5.6 mi · 6 min · I 880
Use the slight left lane.
15

Take the exit

0.3 mi · 35 sec
Exit 17 Toward Mowry Avenue, Central Fremont Use the straight / slight right lanes.
16

Turn left

116 ft · 3 sec
Use the left lane.
17

Turn straight onto Mowry Avenue

0.1 mi · 10 sec · Mowry Avenue
18

Continue on Mowry Avenue

1.5 mi · 2 min · Mowry Avenue
19

Arrive at destination

Mowry Avenue

Heads-up: tricky spots

5 of 12

5 decision points cluster between mile 2.6 and 29.6 — GPS handles the exact turns, but know they're coming. Your lane choice matters more than the turn itself.

8
2.6 mi into trip | ~8m in | Martin Luther King Junior Way

Keep slight left at fork onto Martin Luther King Junior Way toward CA 24: Downtown Oakland, San Francisco, Hayward

Highway fork - watch signs carefully. Lane positioning matters here. Multiple destination signs - pick the right one

Use the straight / slight right lanes. Toward CA 24: Downtown Oakland, San Francisco,...
7
2.8 mi into trip | ~8m in

Keep slight right at fork toward I 980: Downtown Oakland

Highway fork - watch signs carefully. Lane positioning matters here

Use the slight right lane. Toward I 980: Downtown Oakland
6
5.3 mi into trip | ~12m in

Keep slight left at fork toward I 880 South: San Jose

Highway fork - watch signs carefully

Exit 1A Toward I 880 South: San Jose
6
16.1 mi into trip | ~25m in | I 880

Keep slight left at fork onto I 880

Highway fork - watch signs carefully. Lane positioning matters here

Use the slight left lane.
8
29.6 mi into trip | ~40m in

Take the exit toward Mowry Avenue, Central Fremont

Exit ramp - move to the correct lane early. Lane positioning matters here. Multiple destination signs - pick the right one

Use the straight / slight right lanes. Exit 17 Toward Mowry Avenue, Central Fremont

Fuel & Cost

Regular Gas

$7.24 one way

$14.48 round trip

$5.84/gal 25.4 MPG avg 11 kg CO2
Fuel Type $/gal One Way Round Trip
midgrade $6.02 $7.46 $14.92
premium $6.18 $7.66 $15.32
diesel $5.61 $6.95 $13.91

No toll roads detected on this route.

Drive Cost (one way)

Fuel

$7

Estimated CO2 emission: 11 kg one way. Prices: EIA weekly data, 2026-04-13.

Driving Electric?

About $3 in charging · 0 stops · 64% less CO2

Vehicle Type kWh Stops DC Fast Home Charge
Average EV 9.5 0 $3.31 $1.51
Efficient EV 7.9 0 $2.76 $1.26
EV Truck/SUV 12.6 0 $4.41 $2.02

Gas CO2

11 kg

EV CO2

4 kg (64% less)

This trip is well within single-charge range for most EVs. No charging stops needed if you start fully charged.

DC fast charging avg $0.35/kWh. Home charging avg $0.16/kWh. US grid CO2: 0.39 kg/kWh.

Travel Intel

Current conditions at both ends of the drive.

Forecast as of Apr 20, 2026

Origin

Berkeley, CA

Late night in Berkeley on Tuesday

Local time

3:38 AM

PDT

Current temp

68°F

Unavailable

Live forecast

Destination

Fremont, CA

Late night in Fremont on Tuesday

Local time

3:38 AM

PDT

Current temp

49°F

Unavailable

Live forecast

Time zone

Same local time

Origin and destination are on the same clock, so arrival timing is easier to judge at a glance.

Temperature spread

19 degrees cooler at arrival

A meaningful temperature swing is a good cue to rethink layers, water, and how soon you want to arrive.

Road read

44m on the road

Use the two city cards together: check the sky where you start, then compare it with the local time and temperature at arrival.

Weather data from the National Weather Service. Conditions may change; check closer to your travel date.

What kind of drive is this?

This route is mostly highway, with 83% of the 31.5 miles on freeways like I 880. The longest continuous stretch on the highway is 13.6 miles on I 880. You'll transition from freeway driving to surface streets, specifically Martin Luther King Junior Way, as you approach Fremont. Expect urban merging and dense exits common to this stretch of the Bay Area.

83% highway — fuel and pacing are the main things to plan.
19 navigation steps total — most of the decisions cluster near the start and finish.
Longest single stretch: 13.6 mi on I 880.

How Hard Is This Drive?

10/10

This is a straightforward highway drive that stays mostly on I 880 and Nimitz Freeway. This route has several spots where lane changes, forks, or exits need your full attention. The trickiest moment comes around 2.6 miles in near Martin Luther King Junior Way.

Driving Effort 10/10

Focused - lots of decisions in a short distance, but it is over quickly

Balances navigation complexity with total wheel time.

This is a short but busy drive. With 12 decision points packed into just 31.5 miles, you will need to pay attention to lane changes and exits — but the whole thing is over in 44m.

Where does it get tricky?

The main spots that need attention: at 2.6 miles (Martin Luther King Junior Way): Highway fork - watch signs carefully. Lane positioning matters here. Multiple destination signs - pick the right one; at 2.8 miles: Highway fork - watch signs carefully. Lane positioning matters here; at 5.3 miles: Highway fork - watch signs carefully.

Towns Mentioned on Route Signs

Based on OSRM destination-sign hints, not a full list of every settlement the road passes.

Between Berkeley, CA and Fremont, CA, road signs point toward San Francisco and Hayward.

San Francisco

2.6 mi in | ~8m | via Martin Luther King Junior Way

Hayward

2.6 mi in | ~8m | via Martin Luther King Junior Way

About the Cities

Starting in Berkeley, CA

Full guide →

Founded 1866

Set on sparkling San Francisco Bay, Berkeley (pronounced BURK-lee) will surprise those who recall it as the counter-culture center of the 1960s. Free Speech and flower power are forever in the city "DNA," but Berkeley has evolved into a culinary and cultural travel destination. You'll still see more tie-dye per capita in Berkeley, but a deeper look reveals a dynamic East Bay city filled with superb theaters, restaurants, and shops. Berkeley's progressive, free-thinking environment has seen the birth of quality attractions, great food from many cultures, and of course the internationally renowned University of California, Berkeley. For a city of just over 100,000 people—barely a medium-sized city in the California context—Berkeley is extremely complex.

Top landmarks

  • People's Park — park in Berkeley, California, USA
  • Museum of Vertebrate Zoology — natural history museum at the University of California, Berkeley, USA
  • Berkeley Art Museum and Pacific Film Archive — art museum and archive in Berkeley, California

Arriving in Fremont, CA

Full guide →

Founded 1956

Fremont is a suburban city in the southern part of the East Bay of the San Francisco Bay Area; it is the 4th largest city in the Bay Area by population. Fremont is in the southern part of Alameda County, California, between Union City to the north, Sunol and the hills to the east, Milpitas and Santa Clara County to the south, and the San Francisco Bay to the west. The city of Newark, near the edge of the Bay, is surrounded by the city of Fremont. Fremont industry is not particularly large relative to other parts of the Bay Area, but neither is it a bedroom community. Many people in Fremont work locally in the electronics and high-tech industry, while many others commute to Silicon Valley or San Francisco locations for work.

Top landmarks

  • Mission San José — 18th-century Spanish mission in Fremont, California
  • Ardenwood Historic Farm — human settlement in California, United States of America
  • Niles Depot Museum — railway museum in Niles, California

City content from Wikivoyage (CC BY-SA 4.0) and Wikidata (CC0).

Who Is This Route For?

Weekend Trip

Doable as a same-day drive at 44m. Total distance: 31.5 miles.

Family Friendly

Moderate complexity with 0 natural rest stops along the way.

Solo Traveler

44m drive, comfortable solo distance.

EV Driver

0 DC fast chargers along the route. Coverage: unknown.

First-Time Driver

Mostly highway driving (83%). Some complex stretches to watch for.

Frequently Asked Questions

The longest stretch is about 13.6 miles on I 880. The full list of main roads is in the Roads section above.

It helps. This route has a higher-than-average number of complex decision points, which get harder in the dark. If the last hour of the trip is on surface roads or mountain grades, aim to arrive at Fremont, CA before sunset when you can. Check the Trip Plan for departure windows that land you in daylight.

Yes. At under 2 hours behind the wheel, this works well for families — plan one quick stop if you have younger kids.

The main spots that need attention: at 2.6 miles (Martin Luther King Junior Way): Highway fork - watch signs carefully. Lane positioning matters here. Multiple destination signs - pick the right one; at 2.8 miles: Highway fork - watch signs carefully. Lane positioning matters here; at 5.3 miles: Highway fork - watch signs carefully.

Yes. A round trip is manageable in a single day if you plan a break at Fremont, CA before heading back.

How this page is built

Compiled by the US Trip Planner planning team at COD Solutions Oy from open government datasets — OSRM over OpenStreetMap for geometry, and EIA for fuel prices. See our methodology for refresh cadence and limitations.

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