S.F. Bay Area Considers Bridge Toll Increases

A proposal to increase tolls on some bridges in California’s San Francisco Bay Area could have trucks paying an additional $5 to $41.50 per trip, the San Mateo County (Calif.) Times reported.

Under a variety of proposals put forward by the Bay Area Toll Authority, trucks would pay between $6 and $10 more per axle.

Depending on the proposal, a toll for a three-axle truck would jump from $6 to either $11 or $15, the Times said. For trucks with seven or more axles, tolls would go from $13.50 to $35 or $55.

The toll increases are necessary to fund seismic retrofit projects on bridges it oversees and fill a budget hole due to debt and a drop in traffic, BATA said.

BATA oversees tolling on the Antioch, Benicia-Martinez, Carquinez, Dumbarton, Richmond-San Rafael, San Francisco-Oakland Bay and San Mateo-Hayward bridges. It does not oversee the Golden Gate Bridge.