The BART Board voted to support Senate Bill (SB) 532 the “Safe, Clean, and Reliable Public Transportation Emergency Act.”
Authored by Senator Scott Wiener (D-San Francisco), SB 532 would require the Bay Area Toll Authority to raise tolls on the seven state-owned bridges in the Bay Area by $1.50 from January 1, 2024, until December 31, 2028. Revenues from this toll increase would be distributed by the Metropolitan Transportation Commission (MTC) to BART and other fixed-route transit operators, including bus, rail or ferry, to address operating shortfalls and help fund initiatives to increase transit ridership.
“In authoring this bill, Senator Wiener continues to show extraordinary leadership in finding creative ways to assist essential public transit through the immense short-term financial difficulties we face in the wake of the pandemic,” said BART Board President Janice Li. “We are so grateful for the Senator’s support for transit, and we look forward to supporting SB 532 through the legislative process.”
SB 532 offers Bay Area transit agencies experiencing the worst shortfalls a lifeline until a Bay Area regional transportation funding measure can be placed on the ballot, most likely in 2026.
46 comments
Same ol BARF just another scam for the public.
Wiener is a financially ignorant and morally corrupt politician..He’s not worthy of any praise!
No doubt. If Scott Weenie wants it, it’s not a good idea, whatever it is. It seems
to me that if you want more people in SF, this state action by a former SF supe
just killed some more action in the SF equation by upping bridge tolls.
A prime example of INTENTIONAL INCOMPETENCE for left wing causes.
Extraordinary leadership in finding creative ways to assist essential public transit ? Weener is a genius who would have thought of raising taxes.
We used to do a lot of business across the bridge, but now with the zombie apocalypse there is no amount of money worth risking vehicles and employee safety.
Their inability to function properly definitely needs a further infusion to tax money!
No problem with the increase, Bidenomics is kicking in.
BART needs to get their labor costs under control. Maybe a bankruptcy will result in an entirely new labor contract?
Uh, people aren’t going back into the office yet = people aren’t riding BART. Was there ever consideration given to cutting services accordingly or do we just continue to find “creative” ways to throw money at the public transit? Can we impeach Weiner?
Surprise, Surprise, Surprise! What a well run enterprise. They will make great use of the funds!
FED UP,
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Shazam! Gomer Pyle could run BART better than it’s currently being run.
Increases on bridges that are not redundant with BART make no sense. At least limit the increase to Dumbarton, San Mateo-Hayward, and Bay Bridges.
California is the highest taxed state and they just won’t stop increasing taxes even more.
As California circles the drain as result of DEM governance
BART should show some responsibility and “creativity” within its current large budget before getting any more public money. The trains are a disgrace — dirty and dangerous.
Just the dems nickel and diming you to death. Almost twenty years ago I had a business in San Francisco. I drove anywhere in the city and never gave a thought to the safety of where I was driving and parking. Now the bridge toll doesn’t bother me because I am not going into the city to become a victim.
I doubt very much if this fool pays to cross the bridge, pays for gas, or pays for insurance. I’m sure he is either reimbursed, or has a government credit car to take care of all the needs, there fore, he has no problem raising tolls, taxes, or any new fees. As he won’t be paying it anyway. What a worthless tool.
This is exactly the problem with public transit agencies like BART! They run on property tax dollars, bond dollars, gas tax dollars, and bridge toll dollars, they’re not self-sustaining agencies that live/operate within their means, they’re not agencies that are forced to run on ridership ticket 🎟 🎫 sales alone. They’re always going to be bailed out by taxpayers, so they never have to adjust the way they’re being run. Imagine the roadways we’d have if California ended its declared War on Cars, War on Roads, and War on Parking, and all of this money from the gas tax, bridge tolls, and registration fees went exclusively to our roads, instead of being siphoned off to other government agencies and programs.
F*** BART.
F*** the democrat politicians.
Of course BART will praise Wiener; he’s just given them another handout and BART has demonstrated they are financially illiterate.
God I cannot wait to leave. Almost time……
The last round of toll increases has not been completed yet. Will this increase go on top of the current increases or will it be added to the already queued up increases scheduled to happen. Just vote NO.
If BART is struggling financially then maybe they should close the BART merchandise store!
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https://www.bart.gov/news/articles/2020/news20200701
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https://www.railgoods.com/
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Be sure to get your BART-PRIDE swag!!!
1. Since covid, fewer and fewer people are commuting and more are working remotely.
2. Less people will therefore use mass transit.
3. With fewer using mass transit, BART and the bridges will be forced to raise tolls/fares and parking fees to make up the deficit UNLESS They reduce their maintenance and operating costs.
4. With continued increases in fares/tolls etc, fewer and fewer will use BART and the bridges.
5. There, go to step 3 and repeat as nauseum.
The same will happen to the HSR if it ever gets operating. I believe it will NEVER operate.
Until you get people in positions of power that have project management experience and are willing to speak the truth and are not just political appointees, I guarantee failure.
And until you stop re-electing these moron politicians, it will continue. And nobody can prove me wrong.
WEINER IS THE WORST. All of his legislation is terrible, completely out of touch with reality and leaving a trail of horrible consequences everywhere. You cannot raise bridge tolls so high that people want to take BART. BART is a bloated poorly run mess and has been for years. The only effect this hike will have is to give even more people reason not to work in or go to San Francisco.
It looks like Glazer voted yes on this, May 31. Am I looking at the bill website correctly? I thought he came out against this bill?
He obviously took the hypocrite oath, not to be confused with the Hippocratic oath…
Wasn’t he the guy that promised to straighten out BART?
Came out?
SB 532 was rolled out by Sen Wiener in early 2023 as a bill to revise Sec 13119 of the elections code to clarify for voters the questions posed on ballot measures or referendums. The bill was presented to the Senate Floor in that form on 5/31/23 when it passed on a 34-3-3 vote, including Glazer’s aye vote. SB 532 went through a “gut and amend” on June 22, 2023 in the Assembly, to replace the elections code language with language on raising bridge tolls by $1.50 per vehicle to fund BART’s over $300M annual operating deficits. Glazer did not vote to support the bridge toll increase.
BART DIRECTOR DEBORA ALLEN, DISTRICT 1,
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Thank you for the information.
Yes, Glazer voted for it, after “taking BART to task” for mismanagement.
Just another lying politician. I don’t trust any of them.
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“Safe”?
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“Clean”?
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“Reliable”?
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Lies, lies, lies…
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Wonder how this theme fits into the 4 dead bodies found on BART trains and property this week.
Great, now addicts can continue to OD and die on the Bart trains and bathrooms!! Clapping for dumb BART
Scott wieners new movie Money Train 2 coming to your wallet soon.
Pulling the train 2.
It’s unbelievable that they raise the bridge tolls. They don’t have the cost of the labor at the bridges anymore.. Typical government. They can’t do the same with more, so they tax us more.
They could make the toll $40 and it still won’t be enough.
Dumb axx Weiner at it again and I’m sure talking to BART Execs – you pat my back, I’ll pat yours
The BART Board votes for higher bridge toll fees(taxes) so that they can get more money. Is anyone surprised?
Someone should add up all the taxes, fees, ticket price increases, grants, bailout funds and budget increases that taxpayers have funded to keep BART limping along.
BART as well as other state run agencies misuse funds, do not look at creative ways to save money. All they do is go to the tax payers and ask them to do their job (provide assistence). The problem is, most of the voters do not cross the bridge 5 times a week so they figure, what the heck, it wont really affect me. They have no idea they are just supporting bad management.
To clarify the story, the vote to support Senator Wiener’s SB 532 bridge toll increase by a majority of the BART board resulted in a 6-2 vote, Directors Allen and Ames voting NO, Director Raburn absent. Not all BART Board Directors are alike.
BART BOARD DIRECTOR DEBORA ALLEN, DISTRICT 1,
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Thank you for your vote.
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We definitely could’ve used you on the Contra Costa County Board of Supervisors, District 4, but unfortunately the Contra Costa County Political Machine organized an opposition campaign to defeat you, and elect Ken Carlson, one of the worst candidates running for the District 4 seat in 2022. I hope that you’ll attempt another run in the future.
And I’m wondering what wheeling and dealing was done by the directors behind the scenes to ensure the vote would pass while two of them could claim they voted against it?
Until there is full transparency and the entire agency complies with the Inspector General’s requests and demands without stonewalling, I don’t believe one damn word that comes from the directors.
The entire board is responsible for the mismanagement of the agency….like it or not, that’s a fact.
GLEN223,
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Watch or attend the BART Board meetings and you’ll see District 1 BART Board Director Debora Allen in action and you’d see that she often doesn’t vote with the rest of the Board, is often the lone voice in opposition, and her District 1 BART Station restrooms manage to be the cleanest in the entire BART system.
BART BOARD DIRECTOR DEBORA ALLEN, DISTRICT 1,
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Thank you for your vote.
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We definitely could’ve used you on the Contra Costa County Board of Supervisors, District 4, but unfortunately the Contra Costa County Political Machine organized an opposition campaign to defeat you, and elect Ken Carlson, one of the worst candidates running for the District 4 seat in 2022. I hope that you’ll attempt another run in the future.
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