# California State Route 25

State Route 25 (SR 25) is a state highway in the U.S. state of California between State Route 198 in Monterey County and U.S. Route 101 in Santa Clara south of Gilroy. For most of its length, SR 25 runs through the center of San Benito County.

## Route description

SR 25 (also known as Bolsa Road and the Airline Highway) begins at the intersection of Peach Tree Road and State Route 198 about 11 miles west of Priest Valley, in Monterey County, and is the northern extension of Peach Tree Road. It heads northwest, crossing into San Benito County and passing through the community of Bitterwater. SR 25 provides access to the Pinnacles National Park east entrance, running parallel to the San Andreas Fault. Running parallel to the Gabilan Range and Diablo Range, SR 25 passes through the communities of Paicines and Tres Pinos before reaching the city of Hollister.
Upon reaching Hollister, the route turns into a four-lane undivided road, curving north and west through the east side of the city. North of Hollister, SR 25 reverts into a 2-lane road and continues northwest from Hollister, intersecting with State Route 156. From there, the route is a partially divided road until just short of a railroad crossing and eventually crossing the Pajaro River into Santa Clara County. The route then heads northwest, and at the intersection with Bloomfield Avenue, the route then curves west before its northern terminus at U.S. Route 101 south of Gilroy.
SR 25 is part of the California Freeway and Expressway System, and a small portion near Hollister is part of the National Highway System, a network of highways that are considered essential to the country's economy, defense, and mobility by the Federal Highway Administration. SR 25 is eligible to be included in the State Scenic Highway System, but it is not officially designated as a scenic highway by the California Department of Transportation.

## History

The Airline Highway Association was organized in 1933-4 and was composed of representatives of Alameda, Santa Clara, San Benito, Kern and Kings Counties. Its purpose was to establish this "Airline Highway". In the Oakland Tribune article, (Tues. June 19, 1934 page 5. "NEW AIRLINE, HIGHWAY TO L.A. PLANNED") it states "the highway would follow the air line between the northern and southern part of the state as closely as possible". The use of the word Airline is confusing as we associate it with modern-day transportation. In this sense it is defined as an Americanism dating back to 1805 meaning "traveling a direct route".

## Major intersections

Except where prefixed with a letter, postmiles were measured on the road as it was in 1964, based on the alignment that existed at the time, and do not necessarily reflect current mileage. R reflects a realignment in the route since then, M indicates a second realignment, L refers to an overlap due to a correction or change, and T indicates postmiles classified as temporary (for a full list of prefixes, see California postmile § Official postmile definitions). Segments that remain unconstructed or have been relinquished to local control may be omitted. The numbers reset at county lines; the start and end postmiles in each county are given in the county column.
| County | Location | Postmile | Destinations | Notes |
| Monterey MON 0.00-11.75 | ​ | 0.00 | SR 198 – Coalinga, San Lucas | South end of SR 25 |
| San Benito SBT 0.00-60.08 | Bitterwater | ​ | King City Road (CR G13) – King City | Northern terminus of CR G13 |
| San Benito SBT 0.00-60.08 | ​ | 21.47 | SR 146 – Pinnacles National Park | Eastern terminus of SR 146 eastern segment |
| San Benito SBT 0.00-60.08 | Paicines | 39.53 | CR J1 (Panoche Road) – Panoche, Idria | Western terminus of CR J1 |
| San Benito SBT 0.00-60.08 | Hollister | 49.95 | Tres Pinos Road, Sunnyslope Road | Tres Pinos Road is former SR 25 north |
| San Benito SBT 0.00-60.08 | Hollister | L52.2351.45 | SR 156 Bus. (San Felipe Road) – Los Banos, Hollister | Former SR 25 south / SR 156 |
| San Benito SBT 0.00-60.08 | ​ | 54.05 | SR 156 – Los Banos, San Juan Bautista | Converted to a turbo roundabout in 2024 |
| Santa Clara SCL 0.00-2.56 | ​ | ​ | CR G7 (Bloomfield Avenue) | Eastern terminus of CR G7 |
| Santa Clara SCL 0.00-2.56 | ​ | 2.56 | US 101 – Gilroy, Salinas | Interchange; north end of SR 25; US 101 exit 353 |
| 1.000 mi = 1.609 km; 1.000 km = 0.621 mi |||||