Need a tow? Towing in Arroyo Grande, CA
Broken down on the 101 by Grand Avenue, in the Village or in a driveway off Halcyon Road? We come 16 miles up the freeway from Santa Maria, and you'll know the price and our timing before we leave.
Tell us your exit number: Arroyo Grande's four exits on the 101
It's roughly 16 road miles from central Santa Maria to Arroyo Grande, almost all of it on US 101 - north over the Santa Maria River into San Luis Obispo County, through Nipomo, and up to Arroyo Grande's exits, numbered 186 to 188.
- 186: Traffic Way going north, Fair Oaks Avenue going south
- 187A: Grand Avenue, plus Highway 227 heading north
- 187B: Brisco Road going north, Halcyon Road going south
- 188: Oak Park Road
Because two of these exits have different names depending on your direction, give us the number and tell us whether you were northbound or southbound. That way our driver pulls up on your side of the median rather than cruising past on the opposite one.
Moving into a different county means dealing with different agencies (listed below), but our process stays the same: a single price and a time window over the phone, any hour, and no truck leaves until you've said yes.
Where you might be stuck: Grand Avenue, the Village and the Five Cities stretch of the 101
Arroyo Grande is one of the Five Cities, along with Grover Beach, Pismo Beach, Oceano and Shell Beach, and its part of the 101 falls outside both of San Luis Obispo County's Freeway Service Patrol beats. The South County patrol runs from Los Osos Valley Road in San Luis Obispo down to the North 4th Street interchange in Pismo Beach, only on weekdays during peak commute hours, and it ends one exit north of Oak Park Road. South of that, a stranded driver relies on the CHP and the tow company they call - read why the 101 near Santa Maria has no patrol truck before you ever need it.
Take exit 187A and you're on Grand Avenue where Highway 227 begins. The highway follows Branch Street east through the Village, Arroyo Grande's historic downtown, then turns north through rolling hills toward Edna and San Luis Obispo. Beyond the Village, Huasna Road branches off and becomes Lopez Drive, which leads to Lopez Lake Recreation Area at 6800 Lopez Drive; if you're out that way, tell us the closest campground, gate or landmark.
Northbound exit 186 leads to Traffic Way, which crosses Arroyo Grande Creek just east of the freeway. The city shut it in May 2025 to replace its 1932 bridge and reopened it that December. Roughly 11,000 vehicles a day use it to travel between the Village, the southwest side of town and Arroyo Grande High School.
On the ocean side of the freeway, street-legal vehicles reach the dunes through beach entrances at the end of Grand Avenue in Grover Beach and the end of Pier Avenue in Oceano. If your pickup sinks to its axle down there, we'll come to the entrance for a beach winch-out, parking on firm ground and letting the cable do the work.
Get your car back: Arroyo Grande police for city streets, the CHP for the 101
Unlike Nipomo and Orcutt, Arroyo Grande is an incorporated city - 18,441 residents at the 2020 Census - with a police department of its own. When a tow is ordered on a city street, it comes from the Arroyo Grande Police Department, not a county agency or any Santa Maria office.
On the freeway, the CHP is in charge. Its San Luis Obispo Area patrols US 101 from the Santa Barbara County line north to Highway 58, working out of 675 California Boulevard in San Luis Obispo, open weekdays from 8 to 5. If the CHP removed your car from the 101 following a collision or a long wait on the shoulder, ask that office, not the city.
Finding a towed car in Arroyo Grande
- City street: call Records at the Arroyo Grande Police Department, (805) 473-5110, weekdays from 8 to 5.
- The 101: call the CHP San Luis Obispo Area, (805) 594-8700, weekdays 8 to 5.
- Private lot: check the sign at the entrance; CVC 22658 says it must name every towing company and its phone number, along with the local traffic law enforcement agency's number.
That same law requires the property owner to notify local traffic law enforcement within one hour of approving a tow, so even if a lot owner had your car removed, calling the police department can still help you track it down.
Pick your drop-off, and we'll pick the truck for Arroyo Grande
The destination matters as much as the vehicle when we choose a truck. Headed to a shop near Grand Avenue? A front-wheel-drive sedan makes that trip on the wheel-lift. An AWD SUV heading 16 miles back to a Santa Maria dealer, or north to San Luis Obispo, goes on the flatbed for Arroyo Grande runs up or down the 101, with none of its tires on the road.
Lots of trouble here gets fixed on the spot - a battery that quit in a Village parking lot, a flat on Halcyon Road, keys locked in the car at Lopez Lake. For those, our Five Cities jump-start and lockout service gets the car running where it sits.
Our trucks are sized for cars, pickups, vans, SUVs and motorcycles. A big motorhome, or a box truck with a full load, is more than they can take - something we'll mention the moment you describe it.
Also on our route: Nipomo, Grover Beach, Pismo Beach and the rest of the Five Cities
Our trucks drive through Nipomo and its three exits just south of town on the way up, and we cover Grover Beach, Pismo Beach, Oceano and Shell Beach on the same call. Head back down the 101 and you're in Santa Maria, where everything we offer is laid out on our home page.
Frequently asked questions
I'm in Arroyo Grande - what does the 16-mile drive mean for my price and wait?
Arroyo Grande sits around 16 miles by road from central Santa Maria, nearly all on US 101 through Nipomo, and those miles are the biggest piece of the price. You'll get the price and a time window before we leave, at any hour. Please give us your exit number and direction, since exits 186 and 187B go by different street names northbound and southbound.
I can't find my car on an Arroyo Grande street - who would have towed it?
Start with the Records office at the Arroyo Grande Police Department, (805) 473-5110, open weekdays 8 to 5, if the car was on a city street. If it was on the 101, contact the CHP San Luis Obispo Area at (805) 594-8700. For a car removed from a private lot, the tow sign that CVC 22658 requires at the entrance tells you which company has it.
I broke down on the 101 in Arroyo Grande - is anyone besides a tow company coming?
Only the CHP. San Luis Obispo County's South County Freeway Service Patrol beat stops at the North 4th Street interchange in Pismo Beach, one exit past Oak Park Road, and only operates on weekdays during peak commute hours. Along the Arroyo Grande section of the 101, your help is the CHP plus whatever tow company you call.
I need my car moved from Arroyo Grande to San Luis Obispo or Santa Maria - can you do that?
Yes. We take cars north to San Luis Obispo on the 101 or Highway 227, or south on the 101 to Santa Maria, using the flatbed for all-wheel-drive, electric and low cars. The price covers the entire trip, and you'll have it before we set out.
Your exit and direction put our truck on the right side in Arroyo Grande
Once we have these details, your Arroyo Grande price is set before anything leaves Santa Maria.
- Your exit and heading - 186, 187A, 187B or 188, north or south, or a street address in town
- Your ride - model, year, and whether it's AWD or electric
- The problem - stalled on the freeway, a collision, stuck in beach sand, or no start
- Its next stop - a Five Cities repair shop, a San Luis Obispo dealer or your driveway