San Francisco-Oakland Bay Bridge
The San Francisco-Oakland Bay Bridge is the region's workhorse bridge, carrying more than a third of the traffic of all of the state-owned bridges combined. It is also a jewel along the San Francisco waterfront.
The San Francisco-Oakland Bay Bridge is made up of two bridge segments: a skyway structure/single anchored suspension bridge between Oakland and Yerba Buena Island, and a suspension span from the island to San Francisco. Connecting the two is the largest diameter bore tunnel in the world.
The design of the new East Span — which opened in September 2013 — features a single-tower, self-anchored suspension bridge for the segment of the bridge that crosses the shipping channel, and a skyway structure over the shallower waters close to the Oakland shore.
The bike path and sidewalk along Macalla Road between the Vista Point on Yerba Buena Island and Treasure Island are now open seven days a week from sunrise to sundown.
Seismic retrofit of the West Span of the San Francisco-Oakland Bay Bridge was completed in 2004. The original East Span was damaged in the 1989 Loma Prieta earthquake and subsequently repaired. The replacement East Span opened on September 2, 2013.
How many bikes and pedestrians have used the San Francisco-Oakland Bay Bridge path since November 2016? What times of day do most bikes and pedestrians travel the path?
The Bay Lights installation – made of 25,000 LEDs and designed by artist Leo Villareal – lit up the Bay Bridge from 2013 (to commemorate the 75th anniversary of the Bay Bridge) through 2023.
Bridge Facts At-A-Glance
| Location: | Interstate 80, between San Francisco and Alameda counties |
| Structure: | Suspension, tunnel, skyway |
| Length: | 8.4 miles (including approaches and toll plaza) |
| Vertical Clearance: | 220 feet |
| Channel Span: | 1,400 feet |
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| Auto Toll: |
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| Collection: | One way, westbound, in Oakland |
| Traffic Lanes: | Five lanes in each direction |
| FY 2020-21 Total Toll-Paid Vehicles: | 39,324,095 |
| FY 2020-21 Total Tolls Collected: | $296,809,138 |
| Bridge Path Counter Data: | Access bicycle and pedestrian counter data |
See vehicle traffic and public transit ridership numbers from 2019 to the present.
This regional measure, approved by Bay Area voters in 1988, raised tolls on the Bay Area’s seven state-owned toll bridges to fund bridge improvements and parkway construction.
The Bay Bridge Trail carries bicyclists and pedestrians across the majestic East Span, connecting the Oakland shoreline with Yerba Buena Island.