- published: 14 Jan 2016
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The California Department of Transportation (Caltrans) is an executive department within the U.S. state of California.
Caltrans manages the state highway system (which includes the California Freeway and Expressway System) and is actively involved with public transportation systems throughout the state. It supports Amtrak California and the Capitol Corridor.
The department is part of the state cabinet-level California State Transportation Agency (CalSTA).
Like the majority of state government agencies, Caltrans is headquartered in Sacramento.
The earliest predecessor of Caltrans was the Bureau of Highways, which was created by the California Legislature and signed into law by Governor James Budd in 1895. This agency consisted of three commissioners who were charged with analyzing the state road system and making recommendations. At the time, there was no state highway system, since roads were purely a local responsibility. California's roads consisted of crude dirt roads maintained by county governments, as well as some paved roads within city boundaries, and this ad hoc system was no longer adequate for the needs of the state's rapidly growing population. After the commissioners submitted their report to the governor on November 25, 1896, the legislature replaced the Bureau with the Department of Highways.