California Roads Add More Cars After Easing of Restrictions

(Bloomberg) -- California road use is gradually moving toward pre-pandemic levels since the state lifted its Covid restrictions on June 11.

Traffic on the San Francisco-Oakland Bay Bridge, the biggest toll collection site in Northern California, has increased 1% since Governor Gavin Newsom lifted restrictions two weeks ago. More than 120,000 vehicles a day are now driving across the bridge, down from 133,000 in June 2019, Bay Area Toll Authority data show. It’s unclear whether traffic and the gasoline demand that comes with it will fully return to pre-pandemic levels for the rest of this year.

National gasoline demand in “July could push record levels briefly, but I don’t think we’ll sustain 2019 levels potentially for the rest of 2021,” said Patrick DeHaan, head of petroleum analysis at GasBuddy.

©2021 Bloomberg L.P.