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Bay Bridge Mini Plaza to Vanish After Labor Day Weekend Work

OAKLAND, Calif., Aug. 31 /PRNewswire/ -- When westbound motorists cross the San Francisco-Oakland Bay Bridge after the upcoming Labor Day weekend closure, some longtime fixtures in the toll plaza area will be conspicuous by their absence. Work crews will take advantage of the four-day closure to begin improving the right-hand side of the toll plaza area for FasTrak(R)-equipped vehicles approaching the bridge from Interstate 880 or West Grand Avenue. This will include removing the three-lane "mini plaza" northwest of the main toll plaza, as well as the 350-foot long covered walkway that connects the mini plaza with the main toll plaza. This work will begin at 8 p.m. on Thursday, Sept. 3 and will continue until 5 a.m. next Tuesday, Sept. 8.

The mini plaza, which was erected in 1986, can be accessed only through toll lane #18, which is a FasTrak(R)-only lane accommodating vehicles approaching the Bay Bridge from I-880 or West Grand Avenue. Following the demolition, FasTrak customers may continue to access the bridge via toll lane #18, with tolls collected through new FasTrak(R) equipment installed at the north end of the main toll plaza.

"Toll lane #18 now splits into three lanes through the mini plaza, with those three lanes merging down to two lanes out to the metering lights," explained Rod McMillan, Director of Bridge Oversight and Operations for the Bay Area Toll Authority (BATA). "After the Labor Day demolition work is complete, lane #18 will split into two lanes, which will continue all the way to the metering lights."

Demolition of the mini plaza and the covered walkway constitute the first phase of a three-stage program for improving traffic operations on the right-hand side of the toll plaza. Later phases will include the installation in early 2010 of a gantry structure that will extend over the two exclusive bus/carpool lanes (lanes #21 and #22) on the far right side of the roadway, and the conversion of toll lane #17 to a FasTrak-only lane in the fall of 2010. The gantry structure will accommodate more new FasTrak tolling equipment, allowing tolls to be collected for the first time from vehicles in these lanes. This will enable FasTrak-equipped vehicles to access the bridge through lanes #21 and #22 during off-peak weekday hours and all day on weekends.

The toll plaza improvements are part of a continuing effort to encourage more Bay Area motorists to use FasTrak to pay their tolls electronically without having to stop at the toll booths. "Caltrans and BATA are working together to speed travel times and help ensure that commuters enjoy a safe and reliable trip across the entire Bay Bridge corridor," said Caltrans District 4 Director and BATA Commissioner Bijan Sartipi.

Caltrans owns, operates and maintains the state highway system, including seven Bay Area toll bridges. BATA, which is directed by the same policy board as the Metropolitan Transportation Commission (MTC), administers toll revenues from the region's state-owned toll bridges. Toll revenues from the Golden Gate Bridge are administered by the Golden Gate Bridge, Highway and Transportation District. MTC is the transportation planning, financing and coordinating agency for the nine-county San Francisco Bay Area.

SOURCE Bay Area Toll Authority