CALIFORNIA STATE ROUTE 12

'State Route 12' is a state highway in the U.S. state of California that travels in an east-west direction from Sebastopol in Sonoma County to State Route 49 just north of San Andreas in Calaveras County. It is constructed to freeway standards from the Fulton Road/South Wright Road stoplight in Santa Rosa, to its partial interchange with Farmers Lane (also in Santa Rosa).

Contents

Route description

Cities Served

Future aspirations

Exit list

State law

Other names

References

Gallery

Route description

State Route 12 overlaps with Interstate 80 near Fairfield from near I-80's junction (the Cordelia Junction) with Interstate 680, to just southwest of Fairfield near the Budweiser plant. Entering Sonoma Valley it proceeds north through the Sonoma Creek watershed, with a crossing of Calabazas Creek; Route 12 exits the Sonoma Valley with Mount Hood dominating the skyline on the east. Further west State Route 12 crosses Santa Rosa Creek in the eastern part of the city of Santa Rosa. Just east of the Santa Rosa downtown it crosses Brush Creek and makes a ninety degree left turn at Farmers Lane. Proceeding west from Farmers Lane, State Route 12 attains a freeway status for a length of about four miles up to approximately the western city limit of the city of Santa Rosa. It has freeway interchanges with U.S. Route 101 in Santa Rosa, with I-80/I-680 (West) near Fairfield, California, with I-80 (East) near Fairfield with Interstate 5 outside of Lodi, and with California (former US) State Route 99 in Lodi, California.

Cities Served

★ Sebastopol, California

★ Santa Rosa, California

★ Sonoma, California

★ Napa, California

★ Fairfield, California

★ Suisun City, California

★ Rio Vista, California

★ Lodi, California

Future aspirations

Plans call for a western extension of its western terminus to State Route 1 near Bodega Bay, California. Plans also call for Route 12 from Farmers Lane to Melita Road, however this project was delayed due to community opposition. There will be interchanges at Yulupa Ave., Summerfield Road, Channel Drive and Sonoma Highway.

Exit list

Postmile[1]		Municipality	#[4]	Destinations	Notes
County	Statewide
Approaches on surface streets from State Route 116 in Sebastopol
				Fulton Road; Wright Road	At-grade intersection; freeway begins
SON R14.45	5.22	Santa Rosa	5	Stony Point Road
SON R15.30	6.07		6	Dutton Avenue
SON R16.04	6.81	Santa Rosa	7A	U.S. Route 101 - San Francisco, Eureka	Split into Exit 7A (South) and Exit 7B (North) westbound
SON R16.65	7.42		7B	South E Street - Downtown	Exit 7C westbound; eastbound exit and entrance accessible via Bennett Valley Rd; westbound exit and entrance accessible via Maple Ave
SON R17.60	8.37			Farmers Lane	Not complete, freeway ends; SR-12 currently exits eastbound to, and enters westbound from, Farmers Ln
Continues on surface streets to Fairfield
SOL R2.79	50.82	Fairfield		Interstate 80 West - San Francisco	Westbound exit and eastbound entrance; I-80 joins eastbound and leaves westbound
Concurrent with Interstate 80
SOL L1.80	54.84	Fairfield		Interstate 80 East - Sacramento	Eastbound exit and westbound entrance; I-80 joins westbound and leaves eastbound
SOL L2.22	55.26		56	Chadbourne Road - Fairfield Auto Mall - To Interstate 80 East - Sacramento
End freeway, continues as a surface street to Suisun City
SOL R4.47	57.51	Suisun City	58A	Fairfield - Webster Street	Eastbound exit and entrance
				Fairfield - Jackson Street	Westbound exit and entrance
SOL R4.57	57.61		58B	Civic Center Boulevard	Eastbound exit and entrance
				Main Street	Westbound exit and entrance
Continues on towards Rio Vista

State law

'Legal Definition of Route 12:' California Streets and Highways Code, Chapter 2, Article 3, Section 312

Other names

Route 12 has the following names, as designated by various state laws:^[5]

★ 'Luther Burbank Memorial Highway:' From Santa Rosa to Sebastopol. Named for botanist Luther Burbank.

★ 'Officer Rick Charles Cromwell Memorial Freeway:' From Lower Sacramento Road to Route 99 at the Lodi city limits.
==Rio Vista Bridge and the "Wayward Whales"==
Highway 12 crosses the Sacramento River at Rio Vista. This stretch of river has twice been the site of much-publicized inland excursions by humpback whales, presumably veering off course while making their annual migrations along the Pacific coast. In 1985 Humphrey the whale swam about as far as the Rio Vista Bridge. In 2007 a humpback mother and calf circled for several days just upstream of the bridge, seemingly reluctant to pass under it again after having spent the previous three or four weeks upriver near Sacramento.

References

1. January 1, 2006 California Log of Bridges on State Highways
2. California Highways: State Route 12
3. January 1, 2006 California Log of Bridges on State Highways
4. Cal-NExUS Interchange Exit Numbering
5. 2006 Named Freeways, Highways, Structures and Other Appurtenances in California, , , , Caltrans, ,

Gallery