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TRANSACTIONS NEWSLETTER ONLINE

Spring 2010

BRIEFS

Letter to Readers: Transactions Survey Points to Hybrid Approach

Dear Reader: If you’re one of the 1,260 people who responded to our readership survey by mail or online, we thank you for taking the time to evaluate Transactions, and for giving us guidance as we communicate with our various audiences in the digital age. We found out that our readers are a loyal bunch, with 71 percent reading all or most of each issue. More than half of the respondents (54 percent) agree with this statement: “I love Transactions — keep on publishing it!” When it comes to how they would like to get transportation news, readers are split, with 36 percent preferring a printed newsletter, and 28 percent opting for an electronic newsletter. In terms of frequency, the strongest vote — 30 percent of respondents — was for a monthly publication.

The responses point to a hybrid approach. We will introduce a news-oriented, monthly e-newsletter that readers can subscribe to. And we will continue to pub- lish a printed version of Transactions, but cut back the frequency, issuing it only as events warrant. While we are embracing the digital age at MTC, we agree with readers that there is still an important role for a printed newsletter to play.

Sign up for the e-newsletter.

Announcement:
Commission Approves Toll Hike Package for Earthquake Safety

MTC’s Bay Area Toll Authority has approved a new toll schedule for the region’s seven state-owned toll bridges, largely to support seismic safety projects. Beginning July 1, 2010, motorists will in most cases pay $5 to cross the seven bridges, up from the current $4 rate. However, the rate will vary on the San Francisco-Oakland Bay Bridge according to the day of the week and the time of day — a concept known as congestion pricing. On the Bay Bridge, by far the region’s busiest span, tolls for autos will increase to $6 during weekday commute hours, dropping to $4 during off-peak hours on weekdays. On weekends, the auto toll on this bridge will be the same as elsewhere, $5.

Also new is a toll for carpools, which will be set at $2.50, or half the regular rate, during weekday commute periods.In addition, the new schedule calls for phasing in increases for the axle-based tolls for trucks, with the first increment delayed until July 1, 2011.

See toll schedule: <mtc.ca.gov/tolls>.

Special Event
Thursday, May 13, 2010
16th Annual Bike to Work Day

Join thousands around the region who will pedal their way to work, school or errands on May 13, or pick a day in May that works for you. Pledge to bicycle at least once in May, and you’ll be eligible for prizes. Better yet, form a team with friends or coworkers, and bike all month long as part of Team Bike Challenge.

Presented by MTC, 511 and Kaiser Permanente with other sponsors. For more information and to register, go to <YouCanBikeThere.com>.

2009 Annual Report: “Transit in Transition”

Can we achieve a sustainable future for public transit in the San Francisco Bay Area? That is the question posed by MTC’s just-released 2009 Annual Report, titled “Transit in Transition.” For the region’s public transit operators, 2009 was a year of recession- ravaged finances, falling ridership and service cutbacks. Yet, the report makes it clear that transit’s problems run deeper than a single year’s setbacks, and outlines a major new initiative launched by the Commission to respond to this critical situation. The aptly named Transit Sustainability Project will undertake to design, fund and implement a flexible and affordable system that more people will use for more trips.

The report can be viewed online at <mtc.ca.gov/library>. Printed copies of the report may be ordered from the MTC Library: 510.817.5836, or <library@mtc.ca.gov> (while supplies last).

Tracking East Span Construction in Real Time

The Toll Bridge Program Oversight Committee (Caltrans, the Bay Area Toll Authority and the California Transportation Commission) has teamed up with Google Earth to give Bay Area residents and bridge enthusiasts around the world a virtual view from their computers of the Bay Bridge East Span’s self-anchored suspension span as it rises from the Bay. Google Earth users who have the “3D Buildings” feature turned on can view a model of the future bridge and monitor the ongoing construction.

You can find instructions for accessing the East Span on Google Earth as well as views of daily progress on the bridge (taken by stationary cameras) at <bata.mtc.ca.gov>.

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