Car Pool Rules Changed for Coronado Bridge

In an attempt to reduce traffic on the San Diego-Coronado Bay Bridge, drivers with only one passenger will qualify for cut-rate car pool tolls during a three-month test beginning Jan. 20, the California Department of Transportation (Caltrans) said.

Now, drivers must have two or more passengers to qualify for the 20-cent car pool toll. Regular tolls are $1.20 per car, paid when first crossing the bridge, and covering both trips across it.

Caltrans wants to reduce bridge traffic by as much as 1,000 cars a day, a department spokesman said. Crew members of three aircraft carriers based at the North Island Air Station have contributed to the increased traffic, which prompted Caltrans’ decision to lower the car pool requirements.

When the toll bridge opened, traffic was not expected to increase so rapidly, the spokesman said. Because of the traffic rate, the bridge should pay for itself before June, making any loss of revenue from fewer full-toll payments no problem.

“It was a good buy for the buck,” the spokesman said about the bridge.