1) "Going the stretch of 101 between Santa Barbara and LA can, in itself, take 2 1/2 to 3 hours if you hit bad traffic." "I just did this drive but stayed in Santa Barbara on the way down and on the way up. Not good if you have time constraints obviously, but fun for an extended weekend. It only took us about an hour and a half from SB to central LA, but that was with minimal traffic." "On average, 101 South from Santa Barbara to the 5 interchange is around 1 hr/ 1hr 15 min going about 80 with regular traffic. With lots of traffic (say, Friday around evening rush hour) it can be 2 1/2 - 3 hours." Source: http://www.yelp.com/topic/san-francisco-driving-to-la 2) "Transportation The bottom line here: You gotta have wheels. No matter what the driving conditions are like. If you plan to drive extensively, make sure you have good maps that outline specific details of the city. Traffic isn't always a problem -- if you avoid rush hour (between 7 and 9 am and 3 and 7 pm). Unlike New York City, LA's subway system isn't totally convenient." Source: http://www.wegoplaces.com/CALosAngeles_Region_11_Cat_Information.aspx 3) "It is absolutely impossible to describe the traffic. There are no words in English. Don't even think about going anywhere on Friday afternoon (when everyone is leaving) or Sunday afternoon (when everyone is returning) or morning & evening rush-hour." Source: http://photo.net/bboard/q-and-a-fetch-msg?msg_id=005Jf6 4) "Morning rush hour is from 5 a.m. to noon. Evening rush hour is from noon to 7 p.m. Friday's rush hour starts Thursday morning. That and more unwritten LA rules of the road as told by Sue Doyle at the Daily News." Source: http://www.laist.com/tags/rape Further information: http://answers.yahoo.com/question/index?qid=20070801091723AAgL7LE http://toodumbtolivearchive.blogspot.com/2007/09/nasty-traffic.html

Agree with iwnit...My life revolves around traffic. Sunday night the traffic doesn't let up. But most nights, if you start from SB around 7-8pm, you should avoid the worst of it. My preference is to schedule things on Sat/Sun in the early AM. Smooth sailing & you get to enjoy the drive.