Congestion Pricing Working in the San Francisco Bay Area

Motorists driving into San Francisco during the morning rush hour are getting onto the Bay Bridge four minutes faster since July, largely due to congestion pricing.

1 minute read

January 14, 2011, 6:00 AM PST

By Tim Halbur

By implementing a higher toll during morning rush hour, Bay area officials have successfully managed to keep traffic on the Bay Bridge moving faster.

Motorists driving into San Francisco during the morning rush hour are getting onto the Bay Bridge four minutes faster since July.

The wait on the westbound entrance to the bridge on Interstate 80 dropped by four minutes from 7 to 8 am, which is a 15 percent decline.

Though the toll costs $4 during the day, effective July 1 the toll on the bridge was increased to $6 from 5 am to 10 am and from 3 pm to 7 pm on weekdays. Tolls on the other six state bridges also increased to $5.

By charging commuters driving during peak times a premium, congestion pricing attempts to spread out the burden of rush hour traffic more evenly through the day This encourages drivers to use more public transit and drive at staggered times.

Thanks to Ami Cholia

FULL STORY: Congestion Pricing Works On The Bay Bridge

Thursday, January 13, 2011 in AltTransport

Infrastructure California Congestion Pricing Tolls road tolls rush hour traffic View More

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