page_title: Transportation in the Sacramento metropolitan area
section_title: Interstate 5 (I-5)
hierarchical_section_title: Transportation in the Sacramento metropolitan area / Roads and highways / Major freeways / Interstate 5 (I-5)
caption_attribution_description: English: Side view of the terminal of the Gold Line light rail line at the Sacramento Station inter-city, light rail, and bus station in Sacramento, California, USA. The overpass of I-5 appears on the left and the entrance ramp from I Street appears above.
context_page_description: Transportation in the Sacramento metropolitan area consists of a variety of different modes of travel in El Dorado County, Placer County, Sacramento County, and Yolo County, which are the four counties that comprise the Sacramento metropolitan area.
context_section_description: Interstate 5 (I-5) is the north–south interstate highway that runs through the Sacramento metropolitan area.
  To the south, I-5 provides service to Stockton, Los Angeles, and San Diego, terminating at the Mexico–United States border. To the north, it provides service to Redding, Portland, and Seattle, terminating at the Canada–United States border.
  The highway enters Sacramento County from the south near Thornton, then continues northward through the western edge of Elk Grove that is mostly uninhabited wetlands with the exception of Laguna West. As I-5 approaches the city limits of Sacramento near Freeport, it runs adjacent to the Sacramento River that is on the west. The river then makes an abrupt westward curve after which the highway is flanked by the south Sacramento neighborhoods of Pocket-Greenhaven on the west and Meadowview on the east. The river curves back and meets with I-5 again, closing up the Pocket area. The highway then continues along the west side of Land Park, passing by William Land Park and the Sacramento Zoo. As it reaches the southwest corner of the downtown grid, the highway has a full-service junction with the 50/Business 80 freeway, and also merges with California State Route 99 for a concurrency.
  I-5 then goes along the western edge of Downtown Sacramento, passing by many prominent city landmarks such as the Crocker Art Museum, Tower Bridge, and Old Sacramento. After exiting Downtown, I-5 travels through the west side of the Railyards, and then crosses the American River. As it goes through Natomas, it crosses I-80 at the junction between the two freeways. Roughly three miles north, I-5 abruptly curves westward as California State Route 99 splits off and continues northward towards Yuba City and Marysville, ending the concurrency.
  Following the split, the highway provides service to Sacramento International Airport (SMF), and as such, I-5 is the main route to access the airport for the entire Sacramento region. The highway then crosses the Sacramento River and routes across the Yolo Bypass via the Elkhorn Causeway. I-5 reaches Woodland, curves to the northwest direction, and then has a partial-service interchange with California State Route 113 at its northern terminus. After passing through Woodland, the highway converges with Interstate 505 near Dunnigan, then exits Yolo County, heading towards Redding and the Pacific Northwest.
caption: I-5 in Downtown Sacramento at the far left, with the I Street on-ramp to its right, looking up from a surface street
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