How to get fromSan Francisco to East Palo Altoby train, bus, subway, car, or taxi

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There are 5 ways to get from San Francisco to East Palo Alto by train, bus, subway, car, or taxi

Select an option below to see step-by-step directions and to compare ticket prices and travel times in Rome2Rio's travel planner.

Caltrain, line 281 bus
best
1. Take the train from San Francisco Caltrain Southbound to Palo Alto Caltrain Southboundtrain Local Weekday / ...
2. Take the bus from Palo Alto Transit Ctr-Bay 9 to University Ave & Runnymede Stbus 296O / ...
1h 20m
$8–12
Bus
cheapest
1. Take the bus from 11th St & Market St. to University Ave & Runnymede Stbus 397
2h 11m
$3–5
BART, bus
1. Take the subway from Civic Center / UN Plaza to San Brunosubway Yellow-S / ...
2. Take the bus from San Bruno BART-Bay 9 Outer Busway to Bay Rd & University Ave Nearsidebus Epx
2h 9m
$6–9
Drive 31 mi
1. Drive from San Francisco to East Palo Altocar 31 mi
35 min
$6–9
Taxi
1. Take the taxi from San Francisco to East Palo Altotaxi 31 mi
35 min
$110–140

San Francisco to East Palo Alto by train and bus

326Weekly Services

1h 20mAverage Duration

$8Cheapest Price

Questions & Answers

Map of how to get from San Francisco to East Palo Alto.

Launch map view

Distance: 33.3 mi
Duration: 1h 20m

What companies run services between San Francisco, CA, USA and East Palo Alto, CA, USA?

SamTrans operates a bus from 11th St & Market St. to University Ave & Runnymede St every 4 hours. Tickets cost $2–5 and the journey takes 2h 11m.

Train operators

Bus operators

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East Palo Alto, United States(opens in a new window)

East Palo Alto (abbreviated E.P.A.) is a city in San Mateo County, California, United States. As of the 2020 census, the population of East Palo Alto was 30,034. It is situated on the San Francisco Peninsula, roughly halfway between the cities of San Francisco and San Jose. To the north and east is the San Francisco Bay, to the west is the city of Menlo Park, and to the south the city of Palo Alto. The city is directly north of Palo Alto. East Palo Alto was founded as an unincorporated community and incorporation in July 1983. The two cities are separated only by San Francisquito Creek and, largely, the Bayshore Freeway (the vast majority of East Palo Alto is northeast of the freeway, while all of the residential part of Palo Alto is southwest of the freeway). The revitalization projects in 2000, and high income high-tech professionals moving into new developments, including employees from Google and Facebook, have begun to slowly eliminate the historically wide cultural and economic differences between the two cities. East Palo Alto and Palo Alto share both telephone area codes and postal ZIP codes.

Things to do in East Palo Alto

California's Great America(Opens in a new window)

California's Great America is an 112 acre amusement park located in Santa Clara, California, United States. Owned and operated by Six Flags Entertainment Corporation, it originally opened in 1976 as one of two parks built by the Marriott Corporation. Great America features over 40 rides and attractions, with Gold Striker among its most notable, which has ranked as a top wooden roller coaster in the world in the annual Golden Ticket Awards publication from Amusement Today. Other notable rides include RailBlazer, a single-rail coaster from Rocky Mountain Construction, and Flight Deck, an inverted coaster from Bolliger & Mabillard. The park made appearances in the 1994 films Beverly Hills Cop III and Getting Even with Dad.

Demon (roller coaster)(Opens in a new window)

Demon is a multi-looping roller coaster at both Six Flags Great America in Gurnee, Illinois and California's Great America in Santa Clara, California. Both coasters opened in 1976 as Turn of the Century, when both Great America parks were owned by Marriott Corporation. Following the 1979 season, they were modified and rebranded as Demon, featuring a new theme.

Flight Deck (California's Great America)(Opens in a new window)

Flight Deck (formerly Top Gun and briefly as Soaring Chiefs) is an inverted roller coaster located at California's Great America in Santa Clara, California. Built by Bolliger & Mabillard and designed by Werner Stengel, the roller coaster made its debut on March 20, 1993, as Top Gun. The roller coaster was built as Paramount, who had purchased the Great America theme park in 1992 along with several other parks, sought to expand its entertainment opportunities and promote its films. After Paramount sold off its Great America park to Cedar Fair (now Six Flags), the roller coaster was rebranded as Flight Deck.

Gold Striker(Opens in a new window)

Gold Striker is a wooden roller coaster located at California's Great America amusement park. Built by Great Coasters International and designed by Jeff Pike, Gold Striker was the park's eighth roller coaster which opened to the public on May 31, 2013. Its 174 ft tunnel is the longest in the world to be featured on the first drop, and it was marketed as the "tallest and fastest wooden coaster in Northern California". The roller coaster takes on the theme of the Old West and references the California Gold Rush of the 19th century.

Places to stay in East Palo Alto

Four Seasons Hotel Silicon Valley at East Palo Alto(Opens in a new window)

8.7Fabulous

Palo Alto Cottage by Stanford & Tech Companies(Opens in a new window)

9.0Fabulous

Cowper Inn(Opens in a new window)

8.3Very Good

el PRADO(Opens in a new window)

9.1Superb

Rome2Rio makes travelling from San Francisco to East Palo Alto easy.

Rome2Rio is a door-to-door travel information and booking engine, helping you get to and from any location in the world. Find all the transport options for your trip from San Francisco to East Palo Alto right here. Rome2Rio displays up to date schedules, route maps, journey times and estimated fares from relevant transport operators, ensuring you can make an informed decision about which option will suit you best. Rome2Rio also offers online bookings for selected operators, making reservations easy and straightforward.