Golden Gate Bridge district board approves toll hikes

The price to cross the Golden Gate Bridge is set to bump up 50 cents on July 1, bringing the rate for two-axle vehicles to $10.25.

Tolls for FasTrak customers, who make up the majority of bridge motorists, will be $9.25. For drivers who have a “pay as you go” account, which includes drivers who register their license plates or set up a one-time payment through the district, the toll will be $9.50.

The board governing the Golden Gate Bridge, Highway and Transportation District voted 16-2 on Friday to approve the toll increase plan that will raise rates 50 cents annually through 2028. The program is expected to net an additional $139 million in revenue to help narrow a projected $220 million five-year deficit.

Board members Dick Grosboll and James Mastin dissented. Mastin said he thinks the 50-cent increase is “unreasonable,” and that a 40-cent raise would be “defensible” because it is more in line with other increase plans.

“I’m of two contradictory minds with this proposal,” he said, “on the one hand that we were going too far, on the other that we’re not going far enough.”

Tolls were last increased this past July by 35 cents in the final installment of a five-year hike that started in 2019.

Golden Gate Bridge officials announced in December that they faced looming budget deficits that were exacerbated by the COVID-19 pandemic, and that they needed to consider five-year toll increase plan again.

The district says it has about 80% to 85% of its pre-COVID traffic, with commute hours down about 30%. That translates to about a $25 million to $30 million drop in annual revenue.

Moreover, the district has big-ticket capital improvements on the horizon, such as an $880 million seismic retrofit of the bridge. The district is also planning a relocation of the San Rafael Transit Center, which is expected to cost upwards of $50 million.

“It will take additional revenue just to maintain current operations and fund the district’s capital projects,” said Denis Mulligan, general manager of the district. Absent additional revenue, Mulligan said, the district would need to “greatly curtail bus and ferry service.”

Officials considered four options for the toll hike plan. The others were a 40-cent annual increase, a 35-cent annual increase and a 4% annual increase.

After several meetings, including two public workshops, staff determined the 50-cent increase was the preferred option. On Thursday, the district’s finance committee voted 10-2, with Grosboll and Mastin dissenting, to endorse that staff recommendation.

Board member David Rabbitt, the chair of that committee, said Friday that it’s important to note that the plan will not cover the entire $220 million projected deficit.

“We will undoubtedly continue to face difficult decisions with respect to service levels at bus and ferry, and I know we will continue to pursue state and federal funds to leverage our own revenues going forward,” said Rabbitt, a Sonoma County supervisor.

“No one likes to pay more for anything, but at the same time the pain that will be felt will be most severe if the bridge cannot operate or is not there, or, after the next seismic event, cannot maintain traffic,” Rabbitt said. “The investment that we’re making, I think, is a responsible one.”