The Limits of a Golden Goose

(Chronicle photo)

I first drove across the Golden Gate Bridge in 1974. The 75¢ toll seems paltry now, but it was pricey enough to this starving student who thought 50¢ for the Oakland Bay Bridge was already steep.

For the next half-century the Golden Gate Bridge District ratcheted up the tolls to fund its deficits. Higher revenue always resulted, because the number of crossings never decreased until the COVID lockdown. The problem for the District is that traffic has not recovered to 2019 levels. [bold added]

The Golden Gate Bridge saw roughly 85% of pre-pandemic traffic levels crossing its toll plazas as of the end of May, according to agency data...

To stay financially afloat, the Golden Gate district has slashed bus and ferry service, gradually restoring trips as ridership demand inches upward. The district also raised fares by a quarter, as well as bridge tolls, which now cost many drivers $9.75. The district has also leaned on employee attrition to prolong reaching its fiscal cliff.

“What we’re doing right now is controlling our expenses to make our one-time federal COVID relief money last as long as possible,” Mulligan said. “We’d be running out of money, probably in the next couple of months, if we didn’t scale service.”

With more Marinites working from home and the exodus of businesses and people from the Bay Area the decline in bridge traffic appears to be permanent. It took them 86 years and a $9.75 toll, but the Golden Gate Bridge District has finally found the limits of its golden goose.