While tolls for folks coming into the city makes perfect sense, paying to leave San Francisco sounds bizarre, right? After all, San Francisco is so special that one should be rewarded for taking the time and effort to exit its gilded borders, yes?. (Our friends who live in the other bays must promise us a treasure chest of booze, entertainment, sparkling conversation, quality TV programming and/or films, and pick-ups to and from BART stations to tempt us to leave S.F.) more ›

No more free rides for carpoolers, kids. Crossing the Bay Bridge and other spans, if you've got three or more passengers, will be going from $0 to $2.50 on July 1, and the Golden Gate Bridge people are considering a similar hike that would charge carpoolers $3, because the Golden Gate just has to be 50 cents more special. more ›

In addition to raising the car toll another $1 come 2013, the board of directors of the Golden Gate Bridge Highway and Transportation District is considering charging bicyclists and pedestrians to cross the bridge following the completion of seismic upgrades to the pedestrian walkways. The board meets today to review these proposals, which are meant to close a projected $132 million deficit over the next five years. more ›

State-owned bridges like the Bay and San Mateo Bridges may face a toll hike of a dollar (from $4 to $5) in the next year in order to cover costs for retrofitting bridges like the Antioch and Dumbarton bridges, which are apparently also due for collapse in the next big earthquake (along with the Bay Bridge's current eastern span). Why bridges built in the 70s and 80s would need retrofitting is beyond us, but obviously a testament to the fact that government has always cut corners wherever possible. The Golden Gate Bridge, which is privately owned, has had a $5 toll for several years now. more ›

Drivers without FasTrak, be sure to get one within the next year to avoid further cash bridge toll headaches. In an effort to decrease toll-collection costs, ease congestion, and encourage more drivers to pay tolls electronically, the Bay Area Toll Authority will likely be eliminating at least one cash lane on seven Bay Area bridges and adding an additional FasTrak-only lane on the Bay Bridge, the San Mateo Bridge, and the Carquinez Bridge, which would be open during commute hours. The new FasTrak-only lane on the Bay Bridge would be ready by next summer. The changes would cut the number of toll collectors by about 10 percent, and savings are calculated to amount to "several million dollars." more ›