Plenty of solutions exist for easing chronic backups
Weekend after weekend, preventable traffic jams occur on the Golden Gate Bridge northbound, resulting in backups of up to 2 miles and delays ranging from 30 minutes to two hours. The cause is quite predictable.
The very fine tourists who pay top dollar for food, wine and logo-emblazoned merchandise are drawn like zombies to the Vista Point at the north end of the bridge. They get free parking and priceless selfies, but there are only so many spots.
When the lot is full, traffic ripples back to the Marina district and the Park Presidio approach, which is nominally a state and federal route.
For instance, on July 2, in the early afternoon, a quick errand near Fort Mason took me about 30 minutes inbound from Marin, but the return journey took 21⁄2 hours. There are remedies: Bridge management could anticipate the backups and use the movable barrier to open up a fourth lane northbound.
Surely there are many qualified public employees who could close the parking lot gate when the Vista Point spaces fill — California Highway Patrol and Golden Gate Bridge district officers, Marin County sheriff ’s deputies, Caltrans crews, even tow-truck operators or the suicide-patrol folks.
Or, perhaps consider more complicated solutions involving shuttle buses from a remote parking area, advance ticket sales with a smartphone app, or electronic signs that warn cars they cannot stop if the lot is full.
During the July 2 ordeal, I vented my frustration by pestering public workers who answer the phone on a holiday weekend. I didn’t call 911, but I did get through to 511 and a helpful woman patched me through to a CHP dispatcher in Sacramento. He transferred me to a Bay Area dispatcher, and I requested that they do some dispatchin’, and send a cruiser to direct traffic; she was noncommittal, but urged me to have a nice day.
It wasn’t too hard to get a nice man on the line at the bridge office who explained, alas, that the bridge district doesn’t control Vista Point. Caltrans does.
However, a Web search took me to a news release announcing that the Vista Point and the Welcome Center at the south end of the bridge would be closed from May 26 to May 29. This was attributed to the authority of the exalted Golden Gate Bridge, Highway and Transportation District. So, I ask the bridge district directors to use their authority and take steps to end these excruciating, unnecessary traffic jams, and soon. Please.