Research Facts & Figures > Transportation & Utilities
The Oakland International Airport, located nine miles from downtown
Oakland, served a total of 9.5 million passengers in 2010 from eight
domestic airlines and two international airlines with service destinations
in the United States (including Hawaii), Europe and Mexico. The region is
also served by the San Francisco International Airport - 9th in passenger
traffic in North America.
Passenger rail is also a key resource with Amtrak providing service through
multiple East Bay stations to Southern California, Sacramento and other
destinations and a rail service called the “Altamont Commuter Express” (ACE
train) carrying commuters from San Joaquin County to San Jose, with stops in
Livermore and southern Alameda County.
The Bay Area Rapid Transit System (BART), a heavy-rail commuter transit
system connecting the Counties of Alameda, Contra Costa, San Francisco and
San Mateo, is centrally located in the East Bay, with extensions planned to
reach farther into the North Eastern, Tri-Valley and Northern Silicon Valley
sub-regions of the East Bay. Local transit providers help make the
connections between these transportation services, businesses and the
residences in the East Bay.
Traffic patterns and congestion are indicators of the efficiency of a region’s transportation infrastructure, a function of job location versus workforce location and rapid population growth. Traffic congestion slows down the delivery of goods and services, making it more expensive to do business - and ultimately translates into a higher cost of living. It also consumes non-renewable resources, places stress on infrastructure maintenance and impacts air and water quality, quality of life and contributes to social stress.
Bay Area Daily Hours of Freeway Delay Dundas Chart
Bay Area Rapid Transit (BART) Usage
Airport Passenger Traffic Dundas Chart
East Bay Commute Destinations Dundas Chart
Average Conventional Retail Gasoline Prices Dundas Chart
Of the five deep-water ports in the San Francisco Bay, the largest is the
Port of Oakland, the fourth-busiest container port in the nation. It handles
30 shipping lines that deliver 98% of all the containerized cargo that
passes through Northern California ports, with 20 deepwater berths served by
35 container cranes, ten container terminals and two intermodal rail
facilities on 1,210 acres. The Union Pacific intermodal facility has been
supplemented by an 85 acre Joint Intermodal Terminal that can transfer
250,000 containers per year to the Burlington Northern Santa Fe Railway
Company (BNSF) rail network.
The second largest East Bay maritime facility -- the Port of Richmond -- is
a diversified cargo handler, specializing in petroleum and liquid cargos
(chemicals, petrochemicals and vegetable oils), dry bulk commodities (coal,
bauxite, gypsum and cement) and automobiles.
The Oakland International Airport also carried 510,947 metric tons of cargo in 2010 - the 12th largest cargo operation in North America - and serves as a West Coast distribution center for Federal Express, United Parcel Service, Airborne Express and Ameriflight.
Port of Oakland Cargo (TEU Containers) Dundas Chart
Airport Freight Per Year Dundas Chart