Caltrans

The California Department of Transportation (Caltrans) is an executive department of the State of California, operating under the cabinet-level California State Transportation Agency (CalSTA). Headquartered in Sacramento, Caltrans is the largest department within the state's transportation infrastructure and is responsible for managing more than 50,000 miles of California's highway and freeway lanes, providing inter-city rail services, and permitting more than 400 public-use airports and special-use hospital heliports across the state.

Caltrans traces its origins back to 1895, when the Bureau of Highways was first created by the California Legislature. The department officially began operations in its current form on July 1, 1973, after the merger of three existing departments. Today, Caltrans carries out its mission through six primary programs: Aeronautics, Highway Transportation, Mass Transportation, Transportation Planning, Administration, and the Equipment Service Center. For administrative purposes, the department divides the state into 12 districts, with the largest by population being District 4 (San Francisco Bay Area) and District 7 (Los Angeles and Ventura counties).

Caltrans' mission is to provide a safe, sustainable, integrated, and efficient transportation system to enhance California's economy and livability. The department's history is marked by numerous firsts in American transportation, including being one of the first agencies to paint centerlines on highways statewide, building the first freeway west of the Mississippi River, and developing the first four-level stack interchange. The department oversees billions of dollars in construction contracts annually and continues to integrate modern technologies such as fiber communications, ramp metering, cameras, changeable message signs, and traffic monitoring systems to improve efficiency across the state's vast transportation network. Guided by its core values of collaboration, equity, innovation, and integrity, Caltrans remains dedicated to improving lives and communities through transportation.