Press Releases

For Immediate Release

Reminder to Bridge Users: Toll Rises to $3 on July 1

FasTrak® Users Will Receive $1 Discount Through October 31

Sign up for FasTrak® at 511.org

Contact:

Rod McMillan, MTC/BATA
510.817.5860

Jeff Weiss, Caltrans
510.286.5543

OAKLAND, Calif., June 16, 2004...In just over two weeks — on July 1, 2004 — a voter-approved $1 toll increase will go into effect on the seven Bay Area toll bridges operated by Caltrans. On the affected bridges — Antioch, Benicia-Martinez, Carquinez, Dumbarton, Richmond-San Rafael, San Francisco-Oakland Bay, and San Mateo-Hayward — the toll will rise to $3 from the current $2 level. However, drivers of cars and other two-axle vehicles who pay their tolls electronically with a FasTrak® transponder will receive a $1 discount off the new toll from July 1 through October 31. The four-month promotional discount is being offered as a way to encourage motorists to enroll in the FasTrak® program, which in addition to short-term cash savings can offer motorists long-term benefits in convenience and reduced congestion.

“To make it easy for bridge travelers to sign up for FasTrak® , tolltakers at all the bridges began handing out FasTrak® enrollment brochures on Tuesday during the morning and afternoon commute periods,” said Russell Sweeden, toll services manager for Caltrans District 4. Distribution of the brochures will continue today and Thursday. (To minimize traffic impacts, tolltakers will hand out brochures to people who need change or a receipt; however, if traffic is at a crawl, brochures will be given to as many people as possible.) Motorists can fill out the printed application attached to the brochure, or they can apply for FasTrak® online at <www.511.org>. Additional applications can be ordered from the FasTrak® customer service center by telephone at 888.725.TRAK (8725). Motorists who open an account will be sent a free FasTrak® transponder, which is generally affixed to a vehicle’s windshield.

“We want to thank those Bay Area drivers who already have FasTrak® accounts by offering a discount, and to encourage others to sign up,” said Rod McMillan, manager of Bridge and Highway Operations for the Metropolitan Transportation Commission (MTC), which in its role as the Bay Area Toll Authority (BATA) runs the FasTrak® program. “Those who sign up can take advantage of the growing number of dedicated FasTrak® lanes on Bay Area bridges and make their crossings faster, easier and — through October 31 st — cheaper.” The FasTrak® Customer Service Center will beef up staffing to handle expected increases in the number of FasTrak® applications, McMillan added. For more information about FasTrak® , go to <www.511.org>.

The $1 toll increase was approved on March 2, 2004, when by a 57 percent to 43 percent margin, voters in the region passed Regional Measure 2 (RM 2). The $1 toll increase will raise approximately $125 million a year to fund a comprehensive program of projects to relieve congestion and expand transit service in the vicinity of bridge corridors. The Metropolitan Transportation Commission, in its role as the Bay Area Toll Authority, will administer the revenues from the toll increase and oversee the package of traffic-relief projects the increase will fund.

Information about RM 2, including a complete list of projects, is available at: <www.mtc.ca.gov/news/legislative_update/rm2.htm>. Motorists with questions about the toll hike can call 510.464.7707.

NOTE: Tolls on the Golden Gate Bridge remain as currently set: $4 for FasTrak® users and $5 for motorists who pay in cash. More information on the Golden Gate Bridge toll structure is available at <www.goldengate.org>.

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