Highway 101 traffic at a standstill after car catches fire on Cuesta Grade
A car caught fire along the Cuesta Grade on Tuesday evening which then spread to a nearby tree and threatened other nearby vegetation.
According to the California Highway Patrol’s Incident page, the vehicle caught fire around 4:45 p.m., with the driver reportedly scrambling to grab their belongings along Highway 101 north of Reservoir Canyon Road.
By 4:54 p.m., the car fire threatened nearby shrubbery. Minutes later, CHP reported it catching a nearby tree on fire as well.
Caltrans traffic cameras showed that at 5 p.m., both northbound lanes were at a near stop while black smoke billowed ahead.
Southbound lanes appeared to be unaffected.
At 5:02 p.m. CHP reported the fire completely out, but northbound traffic continued to back up as far as the Monterey Street on-ramp at 5:20 p.m.
CHP did not report any injuries.
This story was originally published July 14, 2026 at 5:25 PM.
