On April 3, the Bay Conservation and Development Commission will vote on a Metropolitan Transportation Commission proposal to close the vibrant Richmond-San Rafael Bridge Trail used by people who bike, hike, commute and walk across it every day. The proposal would cut off this critical connection point for all trail users every Monday through Thursday, for conversion to a car breakdown shoulder.
Limiting access would be a massive step backwards for a region already plagued by long commutes, car pollution and environmental health inequity. Congestion on the bridge is a real issue, but it is not caused by people using alternative transportation. Congestion is a consequence of an embarrassing lack of investment in public transit and Marin’s refusal to build sufficient workforce housing, which forces long commutes and car dependency.
The opening of this multi-use trail in 2019 as a four-year pilot project was a joyous occasion, marking the culmination of decades of advocacy, and completing an essential link in the Bay Trail between Contra Costa and Marin counties. Since then, more than 400,000 biking, walking and rolling trips have been made on the pathway.
Now that the pilot phase has ended, industry interests have invested tens of thousands of dollars to claim that the trail is the main cause of the bridge’s pollution and traffic. Their claims are demonstrably false. A 2024 UC Berkeley Partners for Advanced Transportation Technology before/after study concluded that the pathway has not contributed to significant increases in car congestion. It goes on to indicate reductions in emissions varying between 0.2% and 12.7% from the bridge modification on the upper deck. This is because pollution is more tied to increased vehicle miles and speeds, not congestion.
Car congestion on the bridge approach remains an issue, but the primary pinch points are at the toll plaza and the Richmond Parkway interchange, unrelated to the trail and its users. The Metropolitan Transportation Commission’s existing Richmond-San Rafael Forward initiative already has funded projects underway to address these locations.
Over 70 environmental and transportation organizations from across the region, state and country are urging the Bay Conservation and Development Commission to reject this proposal. They are also joined by Richmond City Council, Albany City Council, Berkeley City Council, the West Contra Costa Transportation Commission and the SF Bay Trail Board, which passed resolutions in support of 24/7 access for all between the East Bay and the North Bay by keeping the trail open.
The East Bay needs a solution to bridge congestion, and the wider issues of workers being forced to drive great distances to access employment in the North Bay. Currently, those who rely on public transit are only provided a single, infrequent bus line across the bridge with no service after 10 p.m. If the pathway is closed, those who rely on bicycles, e-bikes and other devices will have no crossing at all.
Equitable and sustainable fixes for the bridge congestion issues involve addressing housing affordability and expanding public transit service on the corridor to move more people more efficiently. Scapegoating the pathway will not solve the problem, and only leave more people stranded and with fewer choices to move throughout the Bay.
Robert Prinz is the advocacy director at Bike East Bay, with more than 15 years of experience in local, regional and statewide transportation issues.