SACRAMENTO — Drivers who want to navigate the world-famous crooked portion of Lombard Street will not have to book ahead of time and pay for the experience after all.

Gov. Gavin Newsom vetoed legislation Saturday that would have allowed San Francisco to test a fee and reservation system for the block of Lombard between Hyde and Leavenworth streets.

Local officials raised the idea of a toll to address residents’ complaints of gridlock, noise and litter from tourists. More than 2 million people drive on the crooked stretch of Lombard Street each year, backing up traffic for blocks as they wait as long as 45 minutes for their turn to traverse the switchbacks.

AB1605 by Assemblyman Phil Ting, D-San Francisco, would have provided an exemption to state law, which ordinarily prohibits local governments from charging people to use a public road.

“As the former county supervisor representing this neighborhood, I am acutely aware of the need to address congestion and safety around Lombard Street,” Newsom said in a veto message. “However, the pricing program proposed in this bill creates social equity issues. Access to this iconic attraction should be available to all, regardless of their ability to pay.”

A plan put forward by the San Francisco County Transportation Authority — which consists of the 11 members of the Board of Supervisors — would have required drivers to reserve a half-hour window between 9 a.m. and 9 p.m. and allow up to 160 cars per hour on the crooked stretch of Lombard. The cost would have been $5 on weekdays and $10 on weekends and holidays, with the revenue paying for staffers on site to check reservations.

Newsom said he was committed to find “other, workable safety solutions.”

Alexei Koseff is a San Francisco Chronicle staff writer. Email: alexei.koseff@sfchronicle.com Twitter: @akoseff