After transbay fare hike, it can be cheaper to drive than...

The cost to take an AC Transit bus across the Bay Bridge jumped to $5.50 Tuesday, which means that at some times of day, bus passengers will pay more than people who drive.

It’s the first of three increases over five years, intended to pay for service improvements and capital costs at the Transbay Transit Center, which has been closed since September. Fares shot up by a dollar Tuesday and will rise by 50 cents next year, and another 50 cents in 2022, bringing the price then to $6.50

Bay Bridge tolls also went up to $7 for motorists during rush hour, $6 on weekends and $5 during non-commute times. Drivers on the region’s six other state-owned spans will pay an extra buck as well: It now costs $6 to cross the Dumbarton, Richmond-San Rafael, Antioch, Carquinez, San Mateo and Benicia bridges.

These new tolls mark the first of several hikes after voters approved Regional Measure 3 in June. By 2025, motorists will pay $9 to ride from Oakland to San Francisco’s tower-studded shoreline.

The revenue will fund 35 road and transit improvement projects, including a latticework of freeway express lanes and BART’s extension into Silicon Valley.

Officials are also discussing plans to raise tolls on the Golden Gate Bridge, which could climb to near $10 by

2023.

Rachel Swan is a San Francisco Chronicle staff writer. Email: rswan@sfchronicle.com Twitter: @rachelswan