Golden Gate Bridge Congestion Pricing Replaced With Parking Pricing Plan

The Feds won't agree to a $1 congestion peak bridge toll, so SF planners have proposed peak hour parking fees on corridors leading to the Golden Gate Bridge to satisfy the Urban Partnership Agreement terms to retain the $158 million grant.

1 minute read

August 19, 2008, 12:00 PM PDT

By Irvin Dawid


"Commuters no longer face the threat of a congestion-based toll on the Golden Gate Bridge, which could have pushed the cost of crossing the span to at least $7. But in its place, drivers parking at meters along the route to the bridge - including on Lombard Street and Van Ness Avenue - will face varying rates that rise during the busiest hours and are designed to increase turnover and push long-term parkers to lots and garages."

"The plan to charge a congestion toll, in which tolls would increase during periods of heaviest traffic, on Doyle Drive or the bridge arose last August when the U.S. Department of Transportation awarded the Bay Area a $158 million grant that included money to replace seismically unstable Doyle Drive..."

The bridge district agreed to a $1 peak toll, "but federal officials objected to the plan, saying the tolls were not high enough to dissuade many motorists from driving during the most congested hours."

Thanks to Gerald Cauthen

Tuesday, August 12, 2008 in The San Francisco Chronicle

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