East Bay— On Wednesday the Bay Area Toll Authority (BATA) successfully voted in support of placing Regional Measure 3 (RM3) onto the June 2018 ballot.
Editors note: this would raise the Bay Bridge toll to a maximum $9 and to $8 on six other bridges, to fund transportation projects. BATA expects this will raise another $4.45 billion to spend on public transportation projects.
The bridges are: The Antioch Bridge, Benicia-Martinez Bridge, Carquinez Bridge, Dumbarton Bridge, Richmond-San Rafael Bridge, Bay Bridge and the San Mateo-Hayward Bridge.
In Contra Costa:
- State Route 29 Improvements – Enhance intersections, signals and signage and safety along State Route 29
- Vasco Road Safety Improvements – Widen lanes and construct a concrete median barrier to enhance road safety
- Richmond-San Rafael Bridge Access (Contra Costa approach) – Upgrade the Richmond Parkway to reduce delay on bridge approaches and at the toll plaza
- *Richmond-San Rafael Bridge Access (Marin approach) – Add a direct freeway connection from Highway 101 to the Richmond-San Rafael bridge
- *Bay Area Corridor Express Lanes – New highway Express Lanes on high-congestion corridors such as Interstates 80, 680 and 580 and that are actively managed to be congestion-free at all times
- Interstate 80 Westbound Truck Scales – Improve freight mobility, reliability and safety on the Interstate 80 corridor through improvements to the Interstate 80 Westbound Truck Scales
- Contra Costa Interstate 680/State Route 4 Interchange Improvements – Reduce congestion and improve safety with widening of Highway 4 and new direct connectors between 680 and 4
- Byron Highway-Vasco Road Airport Connector – Improve access, safety, and economic development with a new connector between Byron Highway and Vasco Road
RM3 constitutes a series of transit projects set to improve the East Bay area – spanning AC Transit rapid bus corridor improvements, Interstate 680, Interstate 80, BART Expansion, the Capital Corridor rail connection, transit center, and corridor improvements, among other projects. These major RM3 projects are valuable, urgently needed investments in traffic relief.
Under the Metropolitan Transportation Commission (MTC) umbrella and governed by the Commission, BATA is responsible for funding the toll bridges’ operations, maintenance, administration, and the long-term capital improvement and rehabilitation of the bridges. A coalition including the Bay Area Council, Silicon Valley Leadership Group, and SPUR is driving these RM3 projects and progress in traffic relief in East Bay communities and throughout the greater Bay Area.
RM3 was developed to help solve the Bay Area’s growing congestion problems and to provide residents with a better quality of life as a result. By increasing tolls on the region’s seven state-owned toll bridges, RM3 will fund crucial traffic relief projects in the East Bay along with the greater Bay Area.
RM3 is a dynamic opportunity for commuters in the East Bay to achieve necessary traffic relief. Commuters will be able to impact their traffic relief and transportation future by saying ‘Yes’ on RM3 to tackle congestion.
RM3 will enable these crucial projects in the East Bay:
- BART Expansion Cars
- BART to San Jose
- Interstate 680/State Route 84 Interchange Reconstruction
- Interstate 680 Transit Improvements
- Interstate 680/Interstate 880/Route 262 Freeway Connector
- Bay Area Corridor Express Lanes
- Bay Bridge Corridor Transit Improvements
- Transbay Rail Crossing
- AC Transit Rapid Bus Corridor Improvements
- Next-Generation Clipper Transit Fare Payment System
- Expanded Regional Express Bus Service
- Improving Bike and Pedestrian Access to Transit
- Dumbarton Bridge Improvements
- Capitol Corridor Rail Upgrades
- Major Ferry Enhancement Program
- State Route 92 Improvements
- Richmond-San Rafael Bridge Access (Contra Costa approach)
- Richmond-San Rafael Bridge Access (Marin approach)
- Alameda-Contra Costa Transit District
- Byron Highway-Vasco Road Airport Connector
- Capitol Corridor Rail Upgrades
- Contra Costa Interstate 680/State Route 4 Interchange Improvements
- East Contra Costa County Transit Intermodal Station
- Goods Movement and Mitigation
- Interstate 80 Westbound Truck Scales
- Interstate 80 Transit Improvements
- Tri-Valley Transit Access Improvements
- Vasco Road Safety Improvements
The Bay Area has struggled with overloaded highways, rundown roads, and overcrowded transit services, and has lacked the resources to restore its rapidly deteriorating infrastructure. Better roadway access and more reliable transportation options are impactful changes that will become a reality when East Bay constituents have the opportunity to support their communities with the passage of RM3.
The Bay Area Council, Silicon Valley Leadership Group, and SPUR are supporting RM3 and are actively engaged with communities across the nine-county region to win the majority vote needed to pass it.
BATA’s and MTC’s vote to place RM3 on the June 2018 ballot is an important step towards ensuring a better transportation infrastructure future. RM3 will bring promising transportation infrastructure improvements to the East Bay, making the East Bay a better place to live, work, and do business.
For more information about RM3 and the Yes on RM3 coalition visit: https://www.yesonrm3.com/
11 comments
So the already outrageous bridge use tolls go up and don’t pay for the bridge up keep? Nah!
Express Lanes create congestion by eliminating one complete lane of travel, they are a money maker for the state, nothing more. Why would we want to pay for building another Express Lane so the state can then charge us to use it…. nah!
CA just raised my registration and gas to pay for these same projects, why would we want to double pay?
BATA is out if their mind if they think this is going to pass. They probably know that the people are going to overturn that Registration/Fuel tax when it is put on the ballot being that the out of touch CA legislature shoved it down our throats.
In the U.S. you can justify each time your local politicians stick their hands in your pockets with the two following propaganda tools: “it’s for the roads” or “it’s to protect the children.” More taxes, tolls & tickets until all Americans are broke. ‘Fixing your roads’ is equivalent to the “empty your pockets” street sentiment. American progression: the thickest modern illusion in the books.
Couldn’t have said it better.
Didn’t they add ¢12 to gasoline tax in November 2017 supposedly for road improvements. Great job Sacramento
Oh yeah, the gas & registration tax, now this. Jimmy Frazier always say “people’s MONEY before politics “. What a fooo
Wait a minute; we now pay a gas tax for infrastructure improvements. Why this? We have a huge surplus; use that!
Ridiculous!!! BART got an increase in the last election for the next 35 or 40 years. Then the gas tax. How much do they need??
When HWY4 was expanded by 2 lanes for 3 miles, the cost was 5 billion. The median turned into a diesel train BART cost 500 million. Half the cost was funded by QE 1-3 that raised the nation’s debt 9 trillion dollars. I believe just “pot hole” repairs will cover the $3 toll increase for these projects. And, they have been promising to fix the most dangerous interchange HWY4/680 for over 20 years now. Say NO! And HELL NO!
Unless you are here illegally, you are getting priced out of California! Figure it out people. Hard working legal middle-class citizens continue to suffer as foreign investors come here, pay cash for everything, rent out to section 8. This single-party run state is so screwed up! The Democrats have ruined California in every way beyond repair.
No confidence, no vite; most are just bare minimum repairs which does not address more lanes and better roads and getting rid of all these mega trucks and vehicles that should not even be on the freeway. Nothing ever materializes except wanting more money. Bay Bridge project horribly managed and west end (enormous bottleneck) should have been fixed as well as access ramps reinstalled that were torn down after quake. BATA, BART, Cal-Trans, LOSERS and THIEVES, operating in bad faith. Need to be reorganized.
Exactly Dirty Harry, well said. I am at the end of my rope plus my employer decided to cut our 401k contribution 25% and cut bonuses and raises after 20 years of service. I feel stupid for working for someone else instead of figuring out a way to do my own business.
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