Tolls! In SF and LA

People hate tolls.

SJ Mercury News covers the congestion pricing scheme, and lays it on thick:

Welcome to San Francisco. That'll be three bucks to enter, and three more bucks to leave.

Sound nuts? Not to the San Francisco Transportation Authority. The agency is considering a proposal to turn the line with San Mateo County into a virtual toll plaza, charging rush-hour commuters up to $6 each weekday to cross into -- and out of -- the city by the bay.

 Ouch.

Buried at the bottom:

Tilly Chang, a deputy director at the agency, argued that the toll would decrease traffic because people would alter their commute times and take transit to save money. The authority predicts that with tolls, traffic at the city's southern border would drop 20 percent during commute times.

"The cost of anything needs to be taken in context," Chang said. "It's not free right now. People are paying in time and having to pad their trip."

Battle lines!

And in LA, the MTA has received a grant for a demonstration project to test the expansion of HOT lanes. If it works--if traffic is reduced and vehicle throughput increased--any number of five additional locations could see a permanent addition. The locations are currently being vetted in more detail.