Regional Measure 3 (RM 3) is a ballot proposition on the June 5th election that will be voted on by residents of the nine San Francisco Bay Area counties: Alameda, Contra Costa, Marin, Napa, San Francisco, San Mateo, Santa Clara, Solano and Sonoma. For the measure to be approved, it requires a cumulative, of all counties, simple majority(50% + 1). The option to proceed with a ballot measure was provided to Bay Area Toll Authority(BATA) by California Senate Bill 595 – Metropolitan Transportation Commission: toll bridge revenues: BART Inspector General: Santa Clara Valley Transportation Authority: high-occupancy toll lanes . And January 24th, 2018, the Bay Area Toll Authority board approved a resolution requesting the nine counties include Regional Measure 3 on their June ballots and information sheets.

Full Text of Regional Measure 3

What is Regional Measure 3?

Regional Measure 3 is the third regional measure to be voted on by the Bay Area. The measure will complement Regional Measure 1 and Regional Measure 2, both bay bridge toll increases, with a focus on funding elective projects. Revenue will go toward purchasing new BART cars, SMART’s rail expansion to Healdsburg, connecting northbound 101 to 580 and conversion of Santa Clara County’s Interstate 101 HOV to High-Occupancy Toll(HOT) lanes, and more projects designed to enable more capacity in the Bay Area. The description of Regional Measure 3 on the ballot is:

BAY AREA TRAFFIC RELIEF PLAN. Shall voters authorize a plan to reduce auto and truck traffic, relieve crowding on BART, unclog freeway bottlenecks, and improve bus, ferry, BART and commuter rail service as specified in the plan in this voter pamphlet, with a $1 toll increase effective in 2019, a $1 increase in 2022, and a $1 increase in 2025, on all Bay Area toll bridges except the Golden Gate Bridge, with independent oversight of all funds?

The definitive effects of the passage of this bill would be

Scheduled toll increases – The non-peak standard toll for the Bay Toll Bridges Bridges(minus Golden Gate Bridge – currently at $7.75) will be (assuming no other toll changes):

$6 in 2019

$7 in 2022

$8 in 2025

$6 in 2019 $7 in 2022 $8 in 2025 Creation of a citizen oversight committee for the use of RM3 toll revenue and projects fund by that revenue

Create a BART Office of Inspector General

BATA would be able to index toll increases to match inflation

Require BATA to enact a 50% discount, of the RM 3 increases, on the second bridge crossing of a single day for 2-axle automobiles during commute hours. Edit: only on the RM3 increases

Financially support transit in all counties for operating and capital needs, traffic improvement projects such as HOV lanes and develop highway connectivity:

Why do we need it RM3 / Whats the point?

Traffic in the SF Bay Area is terrible during commute hours, seemingly the 3rd worst in the country, and used to be the 4th worst in the world. According to the historic vehicle counts toll-paying vehicles use has gone up from 2010 with 119 million vehicles to 136 million in 2016, a 14.3% increase. Due to the traffic, commuters on 80 are slowed to 35mph by 5:30AM in the westbound direction. Congestion and gridlock have a negative effect on the Bay Area including economic lost and additional pollution, a problem for everyone. In the world of economics, to reduce demand of a product or service the most effective method is to increase costs. As the Bay Area toll bridges are in high demand, the state legislature is giving the Bay Area the opportunity to raise prices and discourage driving.

RM 3 is not only about decreasing future demand but about reinvesting in the region’s transportation system to support the requirements of a rapidly growing Bay Area. The proceeds of RM 3 would go toward developing highway express lanes, improving access to freeways and most importantly support improvements to alternative transportation – transit, walking and cycling. Examples include funding for BART’s purchase of new train cars, BART to Silicon Valley phase 2, reconstructing the San Rafael Transit Center and construction of SMART to Windsor.

Approval of RM 3 also provides a mechanism for those suspicious of Bay Area Rapid Transit(BART) District. Not often mentioned in RM 3 discussions, passage of this measure would officiate the creation of the BART office of the Inspector General. An independent office dedicated toward providing California and the BART community insight to any misuse of funds or projects.

How did bridge tolls get to $5 dollars already?

Regional Measure 1 was approved in 1988 to match the bay area bridge tolls to $1. In 1997, California’s legislature approved SB 60 that imposed a $1 toll increase. SB 60 funded the Bay Area bridges’ seismic retrofitting and the plan to build a new east span of the bay bridge. SB 226 was passed in consolidation with SB 60 and gave BATA the authority to raise the toll to ensure enough revenue to pay off debts for bridge safety. Regional Measure 2 was approved by Bay Area voters in 2004 and raised the toll of the bridges to $3 dollars[MTC Timeline]. Regional Measure 2 also primarily supported transit projects such as BART to Warm Springs, BART to East Contra Costa, Vallejo ferry, Clipper Card and the MUNI central subway.

AB 144 was approved in 2006 and increased the standard toll of the bridges another dollar to $4. AB 144 enabled BATA to keep up with the growing cost of the seismic retrofitting and construction of the east span of the bay bridge. Finally in 2010 BATA approved a last $1 toll increase and introduced congestion pricing($1 during peak times) to the Bay Bridge to make the standard cost $5.00. This was done to secure the ability to pay off debt(which they were having difficulty paying due to the 2008 recession) and fund seismic retrofitting of the Dumbarton and Antioch bridges, both excluded from either legislature toll increase.

Common arguments of Regional Measure 3

Arguments For:

$4.45 billion to support Bay area transportation

Supports transit and other alternative methods to move about the region.

Reduces future traffic and pollution

Intense oversight of use of toll revenue and extra oversight of BART

Arguments Against:

Regressive tax – affects the poor more than the rich

It does not fix public transportation

It does not fix traffic congestion

Revenue will go to projects unrelated to the bridge corridors such as improvements for goods transportation(trucks going in or out of port of Oakland), BART to silicon valley, rebuilding Diridon Station

BART Inspector General will not resolve traffic in anyway

Historically regional measure toll revenue has gone toward underutilized or financially unsound projects – Bay Bridge, Oakland Airport connector, Transbay terminal

Rebuttal to Arguments Against:

The alternative is to do nothing substantial to improve Bay Area Transportation – Just let it get worse. RM3 does not fix Bay Area public transit, not even close, but it enables the improvement of mass transportation and alleviates some of the bottlenecks of the traffic congestion.

Progressively applying a bridge toll is not realistic would be subject to loopholes due to paradoxes such as the one-dollar salary executives. Crossing the same bridge with the same experience, regardless of income, should cost the same high or low income.

Prospective low-income transit riders may benefit by riding on transit as the MTC Means-based fare study starts a pilot program to subsidize families below the poverty level to ride BART and other agencies.

By not increasing the toll we are subsidizing driving – BART cost $7.5 round trip from West Oakland to SF and the Bay Bridge toll is $6 dollars.

BART as the backbone of the Bay Area Transportation has been subject to incredible scrutiny from the public and media. $1 million supports possibly improving BART processes and eliminating fraud.

Source: Alameda County – Official Voter guide including arguments

More Information

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My Take:

The status quo is not working. Traffic gets worse and transit gets more expensive for an inferior experience. RM3 won’t make transit better overnight and probably will not noticeably reduce traffic on the bridges during peak time. This measure is an attempt to decelerate the growth of traffic congestion, not eliminate it. Humans are creatures of habit, even if they have to pay $1 more each day $260 more a year, most commuters will be unwilling to modify what they’re used to doing. The toll increases are spread over 6 years, so asking another dollar every 3 years will barely be noticeable. But for new Bay Area residents and commuters, this is a chance to affect their decision making. They’ll be comparing it as $1,360 a year and the time wasted in endless car traffic versus riding a new BART car or double-decker transbay bus and maybe decide that transit is the better option.

Transit, currently, is the more expensive option to get from East Bay to downtown San Francisco. BART from downtown Oakland is $7 round trip using a clipper card, any further and the cost only goes up. AC Transit Transbay bus service is $9, scheduled to be $11 in early 2019. If commuters are to consider alternatives to driving themselves, to limit automotive pollution and congestion, we need to commit to improving the public transportation system and make it the economical decision. The Golden Gate Bridge, with no mercy for low-income drivers, is already at $7.75! $8 after July 1st, 2018. $2.75 more than every other bridge in the Bay Area, there is no reason why there should be such a large discrepancy between the bridges.