Contra Costa Herald

News Of By and For The People of Contra Costa County, California

New Year rings in toll increase at 7 Bay Area bridges

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Bay Bridge Toll Plaza. Photo by Noah-Berger. Source: MTC website.

Last of three voter-approved increases takes effect Jan. 1st; failed in Contra Costa County

BATA board also voted last week to increase tolls to $11.50 by 2030 for bridge maintenance and repairs

By John Goodwin, Assistant Director of Communications & Rebecca Long, Director, Legislation & Public Affairs, Metropolitan Transportation Commission

The Bay Area Toll Authority (BATA) reminds drivers that tolls at the region’s seven state-owned toll bridges will go up by $1 next Wednesday, Jan. 1, 2025. This will be the third of the three $1 toll increases approved by the California Legislature in 2017 through state Senate Bill 595 and by voters through Regional Measure 3 (RM3) in June 2018 which passed by 55.07% to 44.93%. The first of these toll hikes went into effect on Jan. 1, 2019, and the second on Jan. 1, 2022. It funds $4.45 billion slate of highway and transit improvements but did not include bridge maintenance and repairs. Regular tolls for two-axle cars and trucks (as well as for motorcycles) at the Antioch, San Francisco-Oakland Bay, Benicia-Martinez, Carquinez, Dumbarton, Richmond-San Rafael and San Mateo-Hayward bridges will rise to $8 from the current $7 on Jan. 1, 2025. Tolls for vehicles with three or more axles also will rise by $1 on Jan. 1, 2025, at all seven of the state-owned toll bridges: to $18 for three axles, $23 for four-axles, $28 for five axles, $33 for six axles, and $38 for combinations with seven or more axles. Regional Measure 3 continues the peak-period toll discount for motorcycles, qualifying carpools and qualifying clean-air vehicles crossing any of the state-owned toll bridges on weekdays from 5 a.m. to 10 a.m. and from 3 p.m. to 7 p.m. The discounted toll will rise to $4 on Jan. 1 from the current $3.50. To qualify for this discount, carpoolers, motorcyclists and drivers of clean-air vehicles must use FasTrak® to pay their tolls electronically and must use a designated carpool lane at each toll plaza. Contra Costa Voters Opposed Ballot Measure According to Ballotpedia, RM3 raised bridge tolls in the Bay Area—excluding tolls for the Golden Gate Bridge—by $3 over six years to fund the Bay Area Traffic Relief Plan, including a $4.5 billion slate of transportation projects. It was on the ballot for voters in the city and county of San Francisco and the following counties: Contra Costa, Alameda, Marin, Napa, San Mateo, Santa Clara, Solano and Sonoma. Voters in two of the counties most affected by the bridge tolls rejected RM3. The vote in Contra Costa County was 44.54% opposed to 55.465 in favor and Solano County voters overwhelmingly opposed it 30.03% to 69.97%. But voters in the other seven counties approved the measure. Alameda County where voters and commuters are also most affected by bridge toll increases passed RM3 by 53.89% to 46.11% The vote margin was closest in Napa County, where voters approved the measure 50.7 percent to 49.3 percent.

Source: Ballotpedia

Senate Bill 595 and Regional Measure 3 also established a 50-cent toll discount for two-axle vehicles crossing more than one of the state-owned toll bridges during weekday commute hours of 5 a.m. to 10 a.m. and 3 p.m. to 7 p.m. To be eligible for the toll discount, which is to be applied to the second toll crossing of the day, motorists must pay their tolls electronically with FasTrak®. Carpools, motorcycles and qualifying clean-air vehicles making a second peak-period toll crossing in a single day will qualify for an additional 25-cent discount off the already-discounted carpool toll. New FasTrak® customers can obtain toll tags at Costco warehouse stores and select Walgreens stores around Northern California. A complete list of participating locations — as well as an online enrollment and registration feature — is available on the FasTrak® Web site at bayareafastrak.org. Customers also may enroll in the FasTrak® program by phone at 1-877-229-8655; by calling 511 and asking for “FasTrak” at the first prompt; or in person at the FasTrak® customer service center at 375 Beale Street in San Francisco. FasTrak® can be used in all lanes at all Bay Area toll plazas. Major projects in the Regional Measure 3 expenditure plan include improvements to State Route 37 in the North Bay, freeway interchange improvements in Alameda, Contra Costa and Solano counties, the purchase of more new BART cars, extension of the BART system from Berryessa to downtown San Jose and Santa Clara, extension of the Caltrain corridor to the Salesforce Transit Center in downtown San Francisco, expansion of Muni’s transit vehicle fleet, expansion of San Francisco Bay Ferry service and more frequent transbay bus service, an improved connection between northbound U.S. 101 and the Richmond-San Rafael Bridge in Marin County, upgrades to the Dumbarton Bridge corridor, and extension of the SMART rail system to Windsor and Healdsburg in Sonoma County. In Addition to Recently Approved Bridge Toll Hikes Beginning Jan. 1, 2026

The Regional Measure 3 toll hike that takes effect next week is separate from the 50 cents per year toll hikes approved by BATA earlier this month, which will be phased in over five years, beginning Jan. 1, 2026, to pay for the maintenance, rehabilitation and operation of the seven state-owned toll bridges. It will increase tolls by 2030 to $11.50 for those who don’t use FasTrak and $10.50 for those who do. BATA this month also approved updates to the policies for high-occupancy vehicles on approaches to the state-owned bridges, which will similarly go into effect on Jan. 1, 2026. (See related article)

BATA, which is directed by the same policy board as the Metropolitan Transportation Commission (MTC), administers toll revenues from the Bay Area’s seven state-owned toll bridges. Toll revenues from the Golden Gate Bridge are administered by the Golden Gate Bridge, Highway and Transportation District, which joined with BATA to operate a single regional FasTrak® customer service center in San Francisco. MTC is the transportation planning, financing and coordinating agency for the nine-county San Francisco Bay Area. Allen D. Payton contributed to this report.

BATA board approves annual toll increases to $11.50, HOV lane policy changes

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Photos source: BATA

For $2 billion in maintenance, preservation and operation of Bay Area’s seven state-owned bridges.

Contra Costa’s representatives voted in favor of 50-cent annual increases beginning Jan. 1, 2026.

By Allen D. Payton

After extending the period for public input, on Wednesday, Dec. 18, 2024, the Bay Area Toll Authority (BATA) Board of Directors voted 15-0-1 to approve toll increases and other toll policy changes for the Bay Area’s seven state-owned bridges beginning Jan. 1, 2026. Tolls will increase to as much as $11.50 by 2030.

According to BATA spokesman John Goodwin, the vote passed “by all 16 members present save one abstention from a brand-new commissioner, Alameda Mayor Marilyn Ezzy-Ashcraft, who represents the cities of Alameda County.”

The board consists of 21 members, with 18 voting members, he shared. Pleasant Hill Mayor Sue Noack, who represents the cities of Contra Costa, and Contra Costa District 5 Supervisor Federal Glover, who represents the County, both voted in favor of the toll increases.

A phased toll increase starting in 2026 is proposed to fund the Toll Bridge Capital Improvement Plan, which includes almost $2 billion of investment which will be used exclusively for the maintenance, preservation and operation of the San Francisco-Oakland Bay Bridge and the Antioch, Benicia-Martinez, Richmond-San Rafael, Carquinez, Dumbarton and San Mateo-Hayward bridges.

The Bay Area’s seven state-owned toll bridges are structurally sound and in good repair. State law requires BATA — working in partnership with Caltrans — to keep them that way.

The toll increases are separate from the $3 increase approved by Bay Area voters in 2018 through Regional Measure 3 to finance a comprehensive suite of highway and transit improvements around the region. The first of the three $1 Regional Measure 3 increases went into effect in 2019, followed by another in 2022. The last of the RM 3 toll hikes will go into effect Jan. 1, 2025, bringing the toll for regular two-axle cars and trucks to $8.

Summary of the 2026 Toll Increase

Toll rates include the last voter-approved Regional Measure 3 (RM 3) toll increase that goes into effect January 1, 2025.

To encourage electronic toll payment with FasTrak® tags, tolls and help recoup the increased costs of collecting tolls via pre-registered license plate accounts or invoices, on Jan. 1, 2027 will also rise by 25 cents for customers who pay with a pre-registered license plate account and on January 1, 2027 will rise by $1 for tolls paid by invoice.

Two-Axle Vehicle Toll increase schedule 2026-30. Source: BATA

Toll Increase: Two-Axle Vehicle Toll

The toll rate update includes an increase of 50 cents a year from 2026 through 2030 for two-axle vehicles. This phased-in approach is similar to the Golden Gate Bridge’s recent multi-year update to its toll schedule.

*HOV rate is 50% of two-axle FasTrak rate.

Three-Axle or More Vehicle Toll increase schedule 2026-30. Source: BATA

Toll Increase: Three-Axle or More Vehicle Toll

Tolls for multi-axle vehicles also will rise by 50 cents per axle per year from 2026 through 2030.

Multi-axle differential pricing:

  • Invoices: +$1.00 per transaction starting January 1, 2027
  • License plate account: + $0.25 per transaction starting January 1, 2027

A Precedent for Tiered Pricing

The Golden Gate Bridge, Highway and Transportation District has used a tiered pricing schedule at the Golden Gate Bridge since 2014.

Golden Gate Bridge tolls by July 2028 will range from $11.25 for FasTrak to $11.50 for license plate accounts to $12.25 for invoice customers.

Summary of the Changes to High-Occupancy Vehicle (HOV) Policies

BATA is also making changes to HOV policies. To provide regional consistency and to support the future deployment of open-road tolling at the state-owned bridges, the changes will establish a uniform three-person occupancy requirement for the discounted toll during weekday commute periods at all seven bridges. It will also allow vehicles with two occupants to use the carpool lanes on the approaches to all bridges except the San Francisco-Oakland Bay Bridge. These two-occupant vehicles will not receive the discounted toll but will be able to use the carpool lanes to save time traveling through the toll plazas.

BATA’s existing toll schedule allows vehicles with three or more occupants (HOV 3+) a discounted toll (half-price), with a two-person (HOV 2+) occupancy requirement for the discounted tolls at the Dumbarton and San Mateo-Hayward bridges. To provide regional consistency and to support the future deployment of open-road tolling at the state-owned bridges, the new policy will establish a uniform three-person occupancy requirement for the discounted toll during weekday commute periods at all seven bridges. The discounted toll rate is available weekdays from 5 to 10 a.m. and from 3 to 7 p.m.

The policy changes will also allow vehicles with two occupants to use the carpool lanes on the approaches to the Antioch, Benicia-Martinez, Carquinez, Dumbarton, Richmond-San Rafael and San Mateo-Hayward bridges. These two-occupant vehicles will not receive the discounted toll but will be able to use the carpool lanes to save time traveling through the toll plazas. There will be no change at the San Francisco-Oakland Bay Bridge, where volumes of vehicles with three or more occupants are much higher than those at other bridges. Use of the carpool lanes on approaches to the Bay Bridge will still require a minimum of three occupants.

In addition to establishing region-wide consistency for the carpool toll discount, the policy changes are designed to:

  • Improve safety on the toll bridge approaches by minimizing “weaving” between lanes.
  • Optimize lane configurations as now-obsolete toll booths are removed as part of the bridges’ transition to open-road tolling.
  • Increase person-throughput by prioritizing access for buses and carpools.

Read more about the BATA toll increases, here.

See BATA Board meeting agenda items 24-1571 through 24-1575. Watch meeting video.

 

 

BART fares will increase 5.5% on January 1, 2025

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While working to increase ridership currently averaging on weekdays about 40% of pre-COVID figures

By Bay Area Rapid Transit District

As BART strives to increase ridership, which is averaging about 40% of weekday pre-COVID figures, BART fares will increase January 1, 2025, to keep pace with inflation so that the agency is able to pay for continued operations and to work toward restoring financial stability. BART’s current funding model relies on passenger fares to pay for operations.

Fares will increase 5.5 percent on New Year’s Day. The increase is tied to the rate of inflation minus a half-percentage point. It’s the second such increase – the first took effect January 1, 2024.

The average fare will increase 25 cents, from $4.47 to $4.72. BART’s fare calculator and Trip Planner have been updated with the new fares for trips with the date 1/1/25 and beyond. Riders can learn how the increase will affect their travels by entering a 2025 date for their trip.

“We understand that price increases are never welcome, but BART fares remain a vital source of funds even with ridership lower than they were before the pandemic,” said BART Board Vice President Mark Foley. “My Board colleagues and I voted in June 2023 to spread necessary fare increases over two years rather than catching up all at once. At the same time, we voted to increase the Clipper START means-based discount from 20 percent to 50 percent to help those most in need.”

The fare increase is expected to raise about $14 million per year for operations. Combined with the previous year’s fare adjustment, BART will use this $30 million per year to fund train service, enhanced cleaning, additional police and unarmed safety staff presence, and capital projects such as the Next Generation Fare Gates project.

Discounts available for those who are eligible

The regional Clipper START program is an important resource for low-income riders of BART and other Bay Area transit systems. The program is for adult riders with a household income of 200% of the federal poverty level or less. Administered by the Metropolitan Transportation Commission, program participants receive a personalized Clipper card that cuts half the cost of fares on more than 20 transit systems.

Regular, predictable increases a long-term strategy

January’s fare increase is the latest adjustment in a strategy to provide BART funding while providing riders predictable, scaled changes to the costs of riding. In 2004, BART first implemented this inflation-based fare increase program that calls for small, regular, less-than-inflation increases every two years, allowing fares to keep up with the cost of providing reliable and safe service.

BART is also much less expensive than driving on a cost per mile basis. The Internal Revenue Service standard mileage rate for driver is 67 cents per mile; BART riders pay an average of 27 cents per mile, 60% less than the cost of driving.

Outdated funding model

BART’s current funding model relies on passenger fares to pay for operations. Even with the fare increase, BART is facing a $35 million operating deficit in FY26 and $385 million in FY27. Since BART’s outdated model of relying on passenger fares to pay most operating costs is no longer feasible because of remote work, the agency must modernize its funding sources to better match other transit systems throughout the country that receive larger amounts of public funding. BART needs a more reliable long-term source of operating funding and continues to advocate at the federal, state, and regional levels for the permanent funding needed to sustainably provide the quality transit service the Bay Area needs.

Addressing BART’s ongoing financial crisis will take a variety of solutions including securing new revenue and continuing to find internal cost savings. BART costs have grown at a rate lower than inflation, showing we have held the line on spending. We have implemented a service schedule that better matches ridership and we are running shorter trains, reducing traction power consumption and maintenance costs.

Allen D. Payton contributed to this report.

 

SFPD arrests Pittsburg, Oakley boys among 8 suspects in Organized Retail Crime theft series

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The crew ranges from ages 12-18 and is believed to be responsible for at least 23 incidents totaling more than $84,000 in merchandise from multiple Walgreens stores

By San Francisco Police Department

On September 23, 2024, the San Francisco Police Department General Work Investigations Unit was assigned an Organized Retail Crime related robbery that occurred on September 16, 2024, at Walgreens on the 1100 block of Potrero Avenue. During the incident, several juvenile suspects entered the store, concealed merchandise, and ransacked the store. When an employee asked the suspects to stop, two of the suspects assaulted the employee, resulting in a serious head injury.

During the investigation, officers assigned to the Mission Station Anti-Vendor Enforcement Unit recognized five of the juvenile suspects from an investigation into a separate assault that also occurred on September 16, 2024, at 24th and Mission Streets. The suspects were subsequently taken into custody for the Walgreens incident.

A review of other incidents with the SFPD Burglary–Organized Retail Crime Unit led investigators to identify other incidents based on similarities in the suspect description, victim similarities, and modus operandi (M.O.). Through the diligent work of investigators and Walgreens Asset Protection members, a total of eight suspects were determined to have been involved in at least 23 organized retail crime incidents at various Walgreens locations in San Francisco, totaling over $84,000 in stolen merchandise.

Below are synopses of some of the incidents the crew was involved in:

On July 11, 2024, seven masked suspects began gathering outside Walgreens at 2050 Irving Street. Employees recognized them to be thieves, so they locked the doors and called the police.  The suspects then forced the door open and stole over $1.3k in merchandise. (SFPD case 2404353574)

On August 18, 2024, seven suspects entered Walgreens at 1333 Castro Street and began concealing merchandise.  One of the suspects jumped over the front counter and stole a cash register.  The loss was over $6.5k. (SFPD case 240518223)

On September 9, 2024, nine suspects entered Walgreens at 2690 Mission Street and began concealing merchandise.  While the suspects were escaping with over $1k in merchandise, one of the suspects brandished a firearm at a security guard. (SFPD case 240568369)

On September 29, 2024, at 6:14 p.m., eight suspects entered Walgreens at 1333 Castro Street and stole over $15k in merchandise.  The same group came back with five more accomplices approximately two hours later and stole almost $12k in merchandise. (SFPD case 240612916)

Brandon McClain, an 18-year-old male from Hayward, CA was arrested for four counts of burglary in the second degree (459 PC), four counts of grand theft (487(a)PC), four counts of organized retail theft (490.4(a)(1)PC).

A 15-year-old male from Oakley, Ca was arrested on charges of five counts of burglary in the second degree (459 PC), five counts of grand theft (487(a)PC) and five counts of organized retail theft (490.4(a)(1)PC).

A 14-year-old male from Pittsburg, CA was arrested on charges of two counts of burglary in the second degree (459 PC), two counts of grand theft (487(a) PC), and two counts of organized retail (490.4(a)(1) PC).

A 12-year-old male from San Francisco was charged with assault likely to produce great bodily injury (245(a)(4) PC), three counts of robbery in the second degree (211 PC), seven counts of burglary in the second degree (459 PC), seven counts of grand theft (487 (a) PC), ten counts of organized retail theft (490.4 PC) and four counts of petty theft (490.2(a) PC).

A 15-year-old male from San Francisco was arrested on the charges of three counts of robbery in the second degree (211 PC), eight counts of burglary in the second degree (459 PC), eight counts of grand theft (487(a)PC), eight counts of organized retail theft (490.4 PC) and petty theft (490.2(a)PC).

A 14-year-old male from San Francisco was charged with assault with a deadly weapon (245(a)(1) PC), assault likely to produce great bodily injury (245(a)(4)PC), battery causing serious bodily injury (243(d) PC), robbery in the second degree (211 PC), burglary in the second degree (459 PC), grand theft (487(a)PC), organized retail theft (490.4(a)(1)PC), petty theft (490.2(a)PC) and three counts of great bodily injury in the commission of a felony (12022.7(a)PC).

A 15-year-old male from Oakland, CA was arrested on charges of robbery in the second degree (211 PC), four counts of burglary in the second degree (459 PC), four counts of grand theft (487(a)PC), four counts of organized retail theft (490.4(a)(1)PC).

A 14-year-old male from San Francisco was charged with robbery in the second degree (211 PC), burglary in the second degree (459 PC), grand theft (487(a)PC), organized retail theft (490.4(a)(1)PC) and petty theft (490.2(a)PC).

Brandon McClain and the 15-year-old San Francisco resident were also each arrested on the charge of carjacking (215(a) PC) regarding a carjacking incident that occurred on November 5, 2024, in the area of Geneva and Cayuga Avenues.These arrests were made possible due to the collaboration between investigators, the Mission Station Anti-Vendor Enforcement Unit, patrol officers citywide, and Walgreens Asset Protection. While arrests have been made, these are open and active investigations. Anyone with information is asked to contact the SFPD at 1-415-575-4444 or Text a Tip to TIP411 and begin the message with SFPD.

SFPD Cases # 246-134-332, 246-134-360, 246-133-920, 240-639-352, 246-131-645, 240-612-916, 240-613-196, 240-592-960, 240-583-561, 240-568-369, 240-518-223, 240-448-244, 240-444-662, 240-441-997, 240-433-574, 240-433-176, 240-429-363, 240-400-777, 240-326-468, 240-319-968, 246-051-786

Unnecessary toll hikes will strap middle income drivers in Contra Costa and beyond

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The Richmond-San Rafael Bridge. Photo: MTC

By Marc Joffe

As if the $1 toll hike on January 1, 2025, is not enough, commissioners at the Bay Area Toll Authority (BATA) plan to approve a series of five fifty cent increases starting in 2026. By 2030, tolls on the Bay Area’s seven state-owned bridges will reach $10.50 for FasTrak users and $11.50 for drivers paying by invoice. Included in the increase are these four bridges with landings in Contra Costa County:

  • Antioch (Senator John A. Nejedly) Bridge
  • Benicia-Martinez (George Miller) Bridge
  • Carquinez Bridge
  • Richmond-San Rafael Bridge

Aside from toll hikes, motorists are facing a gasoline price increase arising from the California Air Resources Board’s recent imposition of the Low Carbon Fuel Standard. According to a research center at the University of Pennsylvania, LCFS could cost drivers up to 85 cents extra per gallon. And this is on top of California’s highly elevated fuel prices, driven by taxes that rise annually under SB1 (2018).

Despite increasing maintenance costs, the Bay Area bridges are quite profitable. BATA expects total revenue of $1.058 billion this year. The costs of operating the bridges, running FasTrak, and paying debt service are projected to total just $757 million, leaving $300 million to spare.

As BATA admits in its own FAQ on the toll increase, $3.00 of the current $7.00 toll is already being siphoned off for purposes other than bridge operations, maintenance, and seismic safety (this will increase to $4.00 of $8.00 on January 1). For example, almost $6 million is diverted annually to the Transbay Joint Powers Authority to operate its empty bus terminal and to pursue its hopeless plan to bring high-speed rail trains into the Salesforce Transit Center. Bridge toll money is also being used to subsidize Bay Area ferries, SF Muni, AC Transit, Golden Gate Transit, and the NAPA Vine bus service.

The toll hike on the Antioch Bridge is especially egregious. BATA is charging the same tolls on all its bridges despite their vastly different lengths. The Bay Bridge is 8.4 miles long while the Antioch Bridge is just 1.8 miles long. Also, unlike all other Bay Area bridges, the Antioch Bridge has just one lane in each direction.

And then there is the question of income. While many Bay Area drivers are wealthy enough to easily absorb the toll hike, that is less true of people living near the Antioch Bridge. According to Census Reporter, Antioch’s per capita income is only 56 percent of the average for the San Francisco-Oakland-Fremont metro region. Rio Vista, the first sizable community on the north side of the bridge, clocks in at just 67 percent of the metro area’s income per person.

At minimum, BATA should exempt the Antioch Bridge from its planned toll hikes. But better yet, the Authority should shelve its entire toll increase plan, stop siphoning off toll money for other purposes, and live within its means.

Marc Joffe is President of the Contra Costa Taxpayers Association.

Bay Area Toll Authority extends public comment period on proposed 2026 toll hike, carpool policy changes

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Bay Bridge Toll Plaza from MTC website. By Noah-Berger

Until Dec. 18

Authority board considering increasing to as high as $11.50 to pay “exclusively for bridge preservation and operations” in spite of three voter-approved $1 increases

“A Thanksgiving/holiday season decision is a hide the ball strategy. Not good.” – State Senator Steve Glazer

By John Goodwin & Rebecca Long, MTC

November 20, 2024 update: The public comment period on the Bay Area Toll Authority’s proposed toll increase and HOV policy changes is extended through the end of public comment heard on the agenda item for BATA’s December 18, 2024 meeting.  All public written and oral comments provided through that time will be incorporated into the record. However, in order for comments to be summarized and published in the agenda packet and distributed in advance of consideration of this item at the December 11, 2024, BATA Oversight Committee meeting, they must be submitted by 5 p.m. December 3, 2024. 

BATA — which is required by state law to fund projects to preserve and protect the Bay Area’s seven state-owned toll bridges — today heard again a proposal for a toll increase that would be used only to pay for the maintenance, rehabilitation and operation of the San Francisco-Oakland Bay Bridge and the Antioch, Benicia-Martinez, Carquinez, Dumbarton, Richmond-San Rafael and San Mateo-Hayward bridges. If approved by BATA at its December 18 meeting, the toll increase would be phased in over five years, beginning Jan. 1, 2026. 

Source: BATA

The toll increase proposal includes a tiered rate structure aimed at encouraging more customers to pay electronically with FasTrak® toll tags, as this form of payment carries lower administrative costs than payment through a license plate account or returning payment with an invoice received by mail. Under the proposal, customers would pay a premium for using a pre-registered license plate account or for invoiced tolling. To give customers ample time to sign up for FasTrak, this premium would not begin until 2027. 

The proposed toll hike is separate from the $3 increase approved by Bay Area voters in 2018 through Regional Measure 3 to finance a comprehensive suite of highway and transit improvements around the region. The first of the three $1 Regional Measure 3 toll increases went into effect in 2019, followed by another in 2022. The last of the RM 3 toll hikes will go into effect Jan. 1, 2025, bringing the toll for regular two-axle cars and trucks to $8.

The proposal heard today by BATA calls for tolls for all regular two-axle cars and trucks to increase to $8.50 on Jan. 1, 2026. Tolls for customers who pay with FasTrak tags would then rise to $9 in 2027; to $9.50 in 2028; to $10 in 2029; and then to $10.50 in 2030. Tolls for customers who use a pre-registered license plate account would rise to $9.25 in 2027; to $9.75 in 2028; to $10.25 in 2029 and to $10.75 in 2030. Invoiced tolls would rise to $10 in 2027; $10.50 in 2028; $11 in 2029; and $11.50 in 2030. The Golden Gate Bridge has used a tiered pricing schedule since 2014. Golden Gate Bridge tolls by July 2028 will range from $11.25 for FasTrak to $11.50 for license plate accounts to $12.25 for invoice customers.

Under the proposed toll increase, tolls for large freight trucks and other vehicle/trailer combinations with three or more axles would rise by 50 cents per axle each year from 2026 through 2030. 

Removing spalled on concrete on pier cap 305. Photo: CalTrans

“I’m sensitive to the overall cost of living in the Bay Area,” acknowledged Napa County Supervisor Alfredo Pedroza, who also serves as chair of both BATA and the Metropolitan Transportation Commission (MTC). “Working families really feel the impact, not just in transportation but back at home with utilities, groceries, children. This one is hard. But it’s the right thing to do.”

BATA and MTC invite members of the public to weigh in on the proposed toll increase during a comment period that begins Monday, Nov.4, and continues through the end of BATA’s Dec. 18 meeting. Comments may be sent via email to info@bayareametro.gov. As part of its regular November meeting, BATA today held a public hearing in San Francisco to receive testimony about the proposal from Bay Area residents, businesses and other interested parties. 

Today’s presentation by BATA and MTC staff also proposed updates to the policies for high-occupancy vehicles on approaches to the Bay Area’s state-owned toll bridges. These updates would take effect Jan. 1, 2026, concurrent with the proposed toll increase. BATA’s  existing toll schedule allows vehicles with three or more occupants (HOV 3+) a discounted toll, with a two-person (HOV 2) occupancy requirement for half-price tolls at the Dumbarton and San Mateo-Hayward bridges. BATA and MTC staff propose to establish a uniform three-person occupancy requirement for half-price tolls during weekday commute periods at all seven bridges. Carpool vehicles at all state-owned bridges must use a dedicated carpool lane and pay their tolls with a FasTrak Flex toll tag set to the ‘3’ position to receive the 50 percent discount available weekdays from 5 a.m. to 10 a.m. and from 3 p.m. to 7 p.m.

Source: BATA

The proposed carpool policy changes also would allow vehicles with two occupants and a switchable FasTrak Flex toll tag set to the ‘2’ position to use the carpool lanes on the approaches to the Antioch, Benicia-Martinez, Carquinez, Dumbarton, Richmond-San Rafael and San Mateo-Hayward bridges. These two-occupant vehicles would not receive the 50 percent carpool discount but would be able to use the carpool lanes to save time traveling through the toll plazas. Use of the carpool lanes on approaches to the San Francisco-Oakland Bay Bridge still would require a minimum of three occupants.

The new carpool policy proposals are designed to improve safety on the toll bridge approaches by minimizing ‘weaving’ between lanes and to increase person-throughput by prioritizing access for buses and carpools. The policy change also would optimize lane configurations as now-obsolete toll booths are removed as part of the coming transition to open-road tolling.  

BATA, which is directed by the same policy board as MTC, administers toll revenues from the Bay Area’s seven state-owned toll bridges. Toll revenues from the Golden Gate Bridge are administered by the Golden Gate Bridge, Highway and Transportation District, which joined with BATA to operate a single regional FasTrak customer service center in San Francisco. MTC is the transportation planning, financing and coordinating agency for the nine-county San Francisco Bay Area.

In response to a post of the link to this press release on X/Twitter on Wednesday, Nov. 30, State Senator Steve Glazer, who represents most of Contra Costa County, protested the proposed toll hikes writing, “Why was this need not identified and incorporated during the last toll increase in 2018? You don’t buy a boat and a new car when you don’t have the $ to fix the roof! A Thanksgiving/holiday season decision is a hide the ball strategy. Not good.”

Allen D. Payton contributed to this report.

 

Senator Padilla welcomes National Semiconductor Technology Center headquarters to California

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Credit: CHIPS for America

In Sunnyvale

WASHINGTON, D.C. — On Friday, Nov. 2, 2024, U.S. Senator Alex Padilla (D-Calif.) issued the following statement after the Department of Commerce announced that the CHIPS for America Design and Collaboration Facility (DCF), the official headquarters of the National Semiconductor Technology Center (NSTC), will be established in California. Earlier this year, Padilla led the entire California Democratic delegation in urging Secretary of Commerce Gina Raimondo to establish the NSTC headquarters in California.

The DCF in Sunnyvale, California, will be a colocation of the NSTC headquarters and the flagship design hub from where all NSTC R&D work will be coordinated. The headquarters will serve as a site to host NSTC member and semiconductor ecosystem convenings, NSTC programmatic activities, the Workforce Center of Excellence, the future investment fund, and more. The national design facility will include the NSTC Design Enablement Gateway and an institution for design research focused on chip design, electronic design automation, hardware security, and chip system architecture.

“California is the clear choice to lead NSTC’s semiconductor innovation and R&D. Our state has built a world-class innovation economy and has been at the forefront of the semiconductor industry for decades. We are uniquely positioned to leverage our R&D, manufacturing capacity, and end-users to drive this industry forward.

“Establishing the NSTC headquarters in California will capitalize on our state’s unparalleled assets to grow a highly skilled workforce and develop next-generation advancements. I am confident that this CHIPS Act funding will propel emerging technologies and protect America’s global semiconductor leadership, all while bringing good-paying jobs to our state.”

Santa Clara County alone holds 20 percent of all semiconductor utility patents granted in the last decade, and California is home to more semiconductor R&D, design, intellectual property (IP), and electronic design automation (EDA) firms than Texas, New York, and Oregon combined – with over 175 companies operating out of Silicon Valley. The design facility is one of three planned major NSTC centers. The Department of Commerce recently announced the Extreme Ultraviolet (EUV) Accelerator in New York, and said a Prototyping and NAPMP Advanced Packaging Piloting Facility is still forthcoming.

In April, Padilla, Senator Laphonza Butler (D-Calif.), Representative Zoe Lofgren (D-Calif.-18), and Representative Doris Matsui (D-Calif.-07) led the entire California Democratic delegation in urging Secretary of Commerce Gina Raimondo to establish the NSTC headquarters in California. The letter came after Padilla and Governor Gavin Newsom issued a statement rebuking the CHIPS Program Office’s (CPO) cancellation of the third CHIPS Act Notice of Funding Opportunity (NOFO) for advanced commercial research and development facilities in the United States.

In 2022, Senator Padilla and Senator Reverend Raphael Warnock (D-Ga.) sent a letter urging Senate leadership to support provisions in the final version of the United States Innovation and Competition Act that would require semiconductor companies receiving federal assistance for research, design, and manufacturing to invest in a more diverse workforce and improve procurement from minority-, veteran-, and women-owned businesses. Padilla and Warnock applauded the passage of one of these provisions through the Creating Helpful Incentives to Produce Semiconductors (CHIPS) for America Act later that year.

To view the release online, click here.

 

MTC, SPUR to hold webinar on Bay Area transit planning Sept. 3

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Source: MTC

Making Transit Work for the Region — Now and In The Future

September is Transit Month

Join MTC and SPUR online and attend a webinar to learn about progress on two regional initiatives — Transit 2050+ and Transit Priority Improvements.

Tuesday, September 3, 2024 – 12 p.m. to 1:30 p.m.

Transit 2050+ is the region’s first connected network plan for Bay Area Transit and is also a key component of Plan Bay Area, the region’s sustainable community strategy and regional transportation plan. Unlike prior versions of the Regional Transportation Plan, Transit 2050+ focuses on the overall transit network of the Bay Area and prioritizes near term improvements to transit service, speed and reliability.

MTC is working with transit agencies and with Caltrans, cities and counties to plan and implement Transit Priority Improvements, infrastructure that increases the speed and reliability of Bay Area buses and light rail trains.

Staff from the Metropolitan Transportation Commission (MTC) will provide an update on Transit 2050+’s progress and will also talk about the plan’s relationship to ongoing work expanding and accelerating transit priority projects across the region.

About SPUR

SPUR — the San Francisco Bay Area Planning and Urban Research Association — is a nonprofit public policy organization. We bring people together from across the political spectrum to develop solutions to the big problems cities face. Based in San Francisco, San José, and Oakland, we are recognized as a leading civic planning organization and respected for our independent and holistic approach to urban issues.

About MTC

The Metropolitan Transportation Commission was created by the California Legislature in 1970 to plan, finance and coordinate the Bay Area’s transportation system. The Commission’s scope over the years has expanded to address other regional issues, including housing and development.

MTC provides planning, funding, coordination and technical assistance to the Bay Area’s 101 cities and nine counties, plus, transit agencies and other partners to bring the region together — to make life better for residents and make the Bay Area’s transportation system more resilient to future challenges.

Register for the event here.

Housing, transit advocates decry $20 billion regional housing bond measure pulled from Bay Area ballot

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Photo source: Transform

Transform’s leader calls it “a tragic missed opportunity” and “major setback for our climate and transportation goals”; labels opponents who successfully challenged measure, “extremist anti-housing and anti-government activists”

“RM4 barely polled 54% before we even had a chance to open our mouths about it. Are 46% of the citizens of the Bay Area ‘extremist anti-housing and anti-government activists’?” – 20 Billion Reasons campaign opposition leader Gus Mattammal

By Allen D. Payton

In an email to supporters and an announcement this week, Jenn Guitart, Executive Director of Transform decried the removal of the $20 billion Bay Area housing measure from the November ballot and demonized those who successfully challenged it. According to polling commissioned by the Bay Area Housing Finance Authority which placed the measure on the ballot, they found that only 54% of likely voters supported the bond. That’s much lower than the 66.7% support of voters required for it to pass. (See related articles here and here)  CCH: (See related articles here and here)

Labeled “What It Means for Our Movement” Guitart’s email and identical announcement on the Transform’s website read:

On Wednesday morning, the Bay Area Housing Finance Authority (BAHFA) unanimously voted to remove Regional Measure 4 from the 2024 ballot. The measure would have raised $20 billion to alleviate the Bay Area’s housing and homelessness crisis. Unfortunately, the measure was scuttled in response to a series of eleventh-hour challenges by extremist anti-housing and anti-government activists. This is a tragic missed opportunity for voters to say yes to urgently needed affordable housing and homelessness funding.

This decision is heartbreaking for Transform and other housing advocates, and, more importantly, for the hundreds of thousands of people in our region who now must wait longer for the affordable housing and homelessness solutions Bay Area residents need and deserve.

The decision is also a major setback for our climate and transportation goals. By funding the construction of over 40,000 new affordable homes near transit, the measure would have reduced greenhouse gas emissions by over three million tons and spurred an additional five million transit trips per year.

While it is frustrating that a well-resourced group of naysayers halted progress on housing and homelessness this election, Transform and our partners will continue to build the necessary power to win big on these critical issues.

Looking Forward

All is not lost in the fight for affordable housing. Transform and our partners will be working hard to pass Prop 5 this November, which will lower the voter approval threshold for housing and public infrastructure bond measures (from a two-thirds vote) to 55%. This measure is critical to advancing future affordable housing bond measures across the state.

Beyond November, our region continues to face significant challenges, from the housing and homelessness crisis to a looming transit fiscal cliff. New regional funding measures for both transportation and affordable housing are urgently needed. Passing both measures in the coming years will take unprecedented collaboration, creativity, and courage.

Transform will play a leading role in both these efforts as we continue our work to empower communities of color, innovate solutions, and advocate for policies and funding — all with the aim of helping people thrive and averting climate disaster. And we will need supporters like you in this fight to build up the necessary resources, political will, and movement organizing to beat the anti-taxers in future election cycles.

In the meantime, get ready to vote yes on Prop 5 in November, and stay tuned for future calls to action in the fight for housing, transportation, and climate justice for our region.

Transform Executive Asked Why She Demonized Measure’s Opponents

Guitart was asked why she would demonize the opponents to the measure when it only polled at 54% support prior to it being placed on the ballot, which is much lower than the 2/3rds vote currently required and also less than the 55% threshold required for a future vote should Prop 5 pass. She was also asked if she’s claiming 46% of the public who opposed it in the poll are also “extremist anti-housing and anti-government activists” and isn’t she risking angering those who opposed the measure from the start, some of whose support will be needed for passage of a future ballot measure.

Guitart was then asked with such a low level of support, shouldn’t the measure have been revised before it was placed on the ballot in order to address some of the concerns of the opposition to ensure a better possibility of it passing.

She was also asked instead wouldn’t it be better if Transform worked with the opponents to try and find common ground or a ballot measure that will be less anathema to them for a possible future vote or to achieve her organization’s goals

Finally, Guitart was asked if she is willing to offer a public apology to the measure’s opponents, revise her public statement removing the swipes at them and tone down the divisive rhetoric.

However, in response Guitart shared that she is unable to respond right now due to a family issue but wrote, “I will pass your concerns on to our team.”

Ballot Measure Opponent Leader Responds

When asked about the swipes at the opponents made by Transform’s executive director, Gus Mattammal, the leader of the opposition campaign, 20 Billion Reasons, responded, “I have a couple of responses to that characterization:

1) 20 Billion Reasons comprised Democrats, Republicans, Libertarians, and Independents – the entire political spectrum. And to be clear, Democrats were about half the group.

2) Almost everyone in the group has willingly voted for tax increases before, so it’s silly to label folks as ‘anti-tax’. If someone comes to you with an idea for a pizza with pickles, sardines, and mayonnaise, and you say ‘um, no thanks!’, does that make you anti-pizza? Or are you just anti- “this particular idea for pizza”?

No one in this group is against well-constructed policies to alleviate housing unaffordability. Unfortunately, nothing about Regional Measure 4 was ‘well-constructed policy’.

3) RM4 barely polled 54% before we even had a chance to open our mouths about it, and the polling was destined to only go down from there. That means 46% of the voters were against this from the beginning. Are 46% of the citizens of the Bay Area ‘extremist anti-housing and anti-government activists’? I’m a registered Republican, and I feel like our fortunes as a party would be very different here in the Bay Area if that were true.”

About Transform

Founded in 1997 as Bay Area Transportation and Land Use Coalition (BATLUC), according to the organization’s website, Transform works “with organizations, advocates, and community members for improved transportation and housing policies and funding. Together, we can invest in climate and equity, promote innovative transportation, support transportation shifts, and address climate-related housing issues.”

The group claims to have moved “the Overton window”, which is an approach to identifying the ideas that define the spectrum of acceptability of governmental policies that says politicians can act only within the acceptable range, “steadily toward equity and climate resilience.”

They, “envision vibrant neighborhoods, transformed by excellent, sustainable mobility options and affordable housing, where those historically impacted by racist disinvestment now have power and voice.”

For more information about Transform visit www.TransFormCA.org or call (510) 740-3150.

New plan maps route for finishing Bay Trail

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Existing Bay Trail map (left), Bay Trail sign and Bay Trail Gaps map (right). Source: MTC

The Bay Trail Gap Closure Implementation Plan (BTGCIP) sets priorities for future work to complete the remaining 150 miles of the vision of a 500-mile trail network around the bay.

By MTC & ABAG staff

Staff from the Association of Bay Area Governments (ABAG) and the Metropolitan Transportation Commission (MTC) this summer released the Bay Trail Gap Closure Implementation Plan (BTGCIP) final report, which establishes prioritization criteria to rank the benefit of closing the remaining gaps in the San Francisco Bay Trail.

The vision for a complete Bay Trail is a total of 500 miles of trails that circle the San Francisco and San Pablo Bays. To date, more than 350 miles have been completed.

The BTGCIP inventories the remaining gaps, identifies priorities and ranking of gaps for future investment, and develops cost estimates for closing those gaps.

A segment of the existing Bay Trail. Photo credit: Arup

A multi-year process, the BTGCIP featured engagement with a working group of more than 100 participants, with representation from all nine Bay Area counties. The working group included staff from cities, counties, state, federal, transit and advocacy organizations, as well as partnership with nine community-based organizations that engaged with members of the public in Equity Priority Communities.

The process reviewed the entire Bay Trail through the lens of these identified priorities:

  • Center Equity Priority Communities in building out future segments of the Bay Trail
  • Connect segments that create the longest continuous sections of trail
  • Connect job centers to housing
  • Increase access to transit-rich and connected communities
  • Improve access to parks and open space
  • Preserve the shoreline environment and access to the shoreline
  • Consider impacts of sea level rise in the coming decades

Project area map showing the existing and proposed locations of the Bay Trail and Connector Trails. Source: MTC BTGCIP

Project History

In 2005, MTC and the ABAG conducted an evaluation of the Bay Trail network, The San Francisco Bay Trail Project Gap Analysis Study. This study identified gaps in the Bay Trail network, scored and prioritized them, developed cost estimates for future construction, and presented an overall timeframe for completion of the full 500-mile vision of the Bay Trail.

The purpose of the BTGCIP is to build upon the work from 2005 to identify and evaluate existing missing segments of Bay Trail (trail gaps) and prioritize their construction in the remaining build-out of the Bay Trail.

In this updated gap analysis study, a greater emphasis was placed on Equity Priority Community engagement and needs along with aligning the prioritization criteria with Plan Bay Area 2050.

Finally, the study updated cost estimates for closing gaps and conducted sea level rise analysis to begin the discussion about how certain segments of the Bay Trail may need to consider adaptation strategies in the future.

Source: MTC BTGICP

Engagement

The BTGCIP focused on working with the San Francisco Bay Trail Board and Steering Committee, partner agency stakeholders and the community to identify new criteria for prioritizing gap closures and assessing the projects identified to address existing gaps.

This process involved:

  1. A Working Group with agency staff and advocates from throughout the region. The working group had more than 100 participants – staff from cities, counties, state, federal, transit and advocacy organizations – with representation from all nine Bay Area counties.
  2. Paid partnerships with nine community-based organizations (CBOs) who work within and represent communities within Equity Priority Communities (EPCs). The CBO partners hosted nine public engagement events throughout the region with over 200 participants. Two events were held in Spanish, and Spanish translation was available at all events. The engagement events were held in many formats, including: bike rides, tabling at existing community events, zoom meetings, farm gatherings, dinners and picnics.

Existing and proposed locations of the Bay Trail and Connector Trails in Contra Costa County. Source: MTC

See Gap Closure Implementation Plan Prioritization Map – This map visualizes the existing Bay Trail network, the Bay Trail gaps symbolized by priority score, and the existing and proposed connector trails to the Bay Trail network.

See Bay Trail Fieldwork Review Map – This map visualizes the trail conditions data collected from a field review of all existing off-street Bay Trail segments (nearly 300 miles).

Staff Contact – Lily Brown, Associate Planner/Analyst ‐ Equitable and Active Transportation

Phone: 415-778-6721 Email: lbrown@bayareametro.gov

The Bay Trail is a joint project of the ABAG and MTC. To learn more click, here.