Hastened pace for bridge toll hikes proposed

The MTC is slated to vote Jan. 24 to ask that the nine Bay Area counties place RM3 on the June ballot. Voters will see a proposal that includes a $1 increase in 2019, another in 2022 and one more in 2025. If it passes, the MTC’s Bay Area Toll Authority would then be authorized to tie subsequent hikes to inflation, without having to go back to voters. The proposal includes a 50 percent discount to drivers whose commutes cross more than one bridge.

Each $1 increase is expected to raise $125 million a year with RM3 generating nearly $4.5 billion over the coming decades. Initially, the MTC was considering phasing in increases over eight years, a prospect some East Bay representatives preferred. Passage of the measure requires just a simple majority of all voters, meaning even if it fails in one county, other jurisdictions that don’t have a lot of bridge-crossing constituents could make up the difference.  

Polling data of 4,100 voters that indicated more than 60 percent were likely to support the increases, although that survey considered the longer phase-in schedule. But committee members agreed this week to ask voters to hasten the pace with a six-year schedule in a measure they’re labeling “Bay Area Traffic Relief Plan.”

MTC Commissioner Warren Slocum, vice chair of the BATA Oversight Committee and a San Mateo County supervisor, said he was swayed by the improvements RM3 is scheduled to support.

“Rather than wait, let’s start getting the money in the bank to fund some of the projects. It’s that simple,” Slocum said. “I think all of us are interested in congestion relief sooner as opposed to later.”

But some commissioners representing East and North Bay constituents who are more likely to shoulder the costs, sought a softer approach on drivers’ pocketbooks.

MTC Commissioner Amy Worth, chair of the BATA Oversight Committee who represents the cities of Contra Costa County, said her preference would have been to provide more time for commuters to adjust.

“Yes, I felt a longer phase-in schedule would have been more tolerable for bridge toll payers,” Worth said in an email.

With just a few months until the June primary, a hefty campaign led by RM3 proponents and business groups is expected to unfold.

Several state lawmakers representing San Mateo County are expected to throw their weight behind the measure as well.

“I’ll definitely be campaigning for RM3,” said Assemblyman Kevin Mullin, D-South San Francisco. “So many of these projects are regional in nature, so we as a region have to come together and say ‘this is an important investment.’ Ultimately, it’s up to the voters, but I think there are real benefits.”

A collection of Bay Area lawmakers spent months negotiating an expenditure plan that legally should provide a nexus between those paying the tolls and who receives benefits.

Proposed projects

Of the funds potentially generated by RM3, 62 percent would support transit, 31 percent goes toward roads and highway improvements, and 7 percent is aimed at multimodal as well as bicycle and pedestrian projects. 

The expenditure plan includes $60 million toward operating expenses and $1.95 billion for “regional projects” such as expanding BART, the Capitol Corridor train, enhancing ferries and the San Francisco Bay Trail/Safe Routes to transit program. Another $780 million would go toward the “central” corridor that includes the Bay Bridge, $610 million toward the “south” corridor that includes projects in San Mateo and Santa Clara counties, and nearly $1.1 billion toward the “north” corridor that includes projects in Marin, Sonoma, Richmond and Contra Costa counties, according to the MTC.

Projects relevant to San Mateo County in particular include $130 million toward the Dumbarton corridor and $50 million for the Highway 101/State Route 92 interchange. The Highway 101 Managed Lanes Project, a proposal to install toll lanes along a San Mateo County stretch, is also expected to receive a boost.

Mullin is excited by funding for an expansion of ferry service, which would harness the Bay as an important commuter corridor. Ferries, he said, could benefit communities like Redwood City and South San Francisco.

Assemblyman Marc Berman, D-Palo Alto, said he would have liked to see more funding directed to Peninsula communities harboring many of the jobs that attract commuters. But RM3 funding, he said, will provide important momentum on a wide array of projects, he said.

“It doesn’t solve all of our problems,” Berman said. “It’s a great down payment on the overall projects to start providing some congestion relief. ... We’ve neglected our transportation infrastructure for too long.”

Other tax efforts

RM3 isn’t the only route voters in San Mateo County will be asked to support in 2018. Drivers are paying more at the pump thanks to Senate Bill 1, an overhaul of how the state funds transportation that included a statewide gas tax hike, increases to vehicle registration fees and a surcharge for electric cars. The San Mateo County Transit District is poised to ask November voters for another half-cent sales tax dedicated to local transportation, which could generate an estimated $82 million a year. And in 2020, Caltrain will ponder asking those in Santa Clara, San Mateo and San Francisco counties for an eighth-cent sales tax to fuel its rail system.

While the coming years present a confluence of demands on drivers and taxpayers, RM3 proponents contend raising bridge tolls offers a regional funding source for regional traffic.

“The growth in Silicon Valley and this corridor hasn’t stopped, it doesn’t appear to be slowing,” Slocum said. “If we did nothing, it would be total gridlock.”

samantha@smdailyjournal.com

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Twitter: @samantha_weigel