GG Bridge Sees More Transit, Less Cars

The Golden Gate Bridge isn't getting any younger, and the 74-year old span from Marin to San Francisco isn't getting any cheaper, with both gas and tolls on the rise.

Maybe that's why commuters are leaving their cars at home when preparing to cross the Golden Gate.

Some 1.7 million private automobiles drove across the bridge last month -- that's a lot of four-wheeled vehicles, but 1 whole percentage point less than the tally from the same time last year, according to the Wall Street Journal.

Public transit-takers likewise went up. In May, 576,000 commuters took Golden Gate Transit or other public transit options, a 4.2 percent spike from May 2010.

Rising gas prices are one part of the trend change, said a spokeswoman for the Golden Gate Bridge Highway and Transportation district, the regional agency which oversees the bridge and how to get across it.

Figures for bikes and walkers weren't available.
 

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