Bay Area tolls jump to $10 as greedy California milks commuters dry

The cost of commuting across the San Francisco Bay Area is only going to get more expensive once New Year’s Day hits.

Drivers crossing seven different bridges in the region may have to fork over up to $10 per crossing, a ramp up from the current standard $8.50 fee. The bridges are the Antioch, Benicia-Martinez, Carquinez, Dumbarton, Richmond-San Rafael, San Mateo-Hayward and San Francisco-Oakland Bay bridges.

The price increase was actually approved in 2024 but delayed to next year, according to FasTrak, the state’s electronic toll collection system.

The $10 price tag, however, can be avoided under a new tiered pricing structure. Those drivers with a FasTrak toll tag will only pay $9, while those with a pre-paid license plate account can pay just $9.25.

The goal, officials said, is to encourage drivers to sign up for FasTrak, as it carries “lower administrative costs” than a customer receiving an invoice through the mail.  

It costs time and money to look up license plates in DMV databases and then send a paper bill in the mail.

John Goodwin, a spokesperson for the Metropolitan Transportation Commission, told the San Francisco Chronicle that about three-quarters of Bay Area bridge drivers use FasTrak.

The tiered structure comes as the region looks to do away with toll booths and allow for seamless travel on the bridges, with mounted cameras and sensors up high automatically reading FasTrak tags. The Richmond-San Rafael Bridge is expected to be the first bridge to carry out that vision after April.

Toll prices have been steadily going up over the past years and will continue to do so to keep up with increasingly expensive maintenance costs for the massive bridges.

Tolls on the seven bridges paid with FasTrak will rise to $9 in 2027, $9.50 in 2028, $10 in 2029 and $10.50 in 2030. Invoiced tolls will continue to carry the one-dollar premium.

Drivers already struggling with the state’s high cost of living indicated they’re not happy with rate increases.

“It’s Satanic,” Frank Remlinger of Vallejo told the Chronicle. He crosses two bridges every day during his work commute.”

“It’s a lot already – I guess I’m just cheap,” another driver, Tairat Asuni, told the newspaper, but she acknowledged it might be a necessary price to pay to keep the bridges, which are essential for getting around the Bay Area.

Another bridge — the more famous Golden Gate Bridge — has also seen its fair share of toll increases. This past July, toll prices were updated to a whopping $11.25, far more expensive than the others.

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