Security cameras and other anti-terrorist safety features on the new Bay Bridge will cost $31 million, according to reports -- and the plan is to send the bill to toll payers.
The Bay Area Toll Authority say that $26.3 million is sought for the eastern side of the Bay Bridge alone, according to the San Francisco Appeal online newspaper.
The bill includes $15.7 million for 175 cameras -- including video, infrared, and thermal imaging cameras -- and another $10.6 million for a control system, telecommunications, and contingency costs, the newspaper reported.
The original allotment for the bridge's security plan was $8 million, so the high ask surprised members of the authority, the newspaper reported.
A Napa County supervisor asked why Caltrans and CHP can't fund the bridge, and why it must go to tollpayers.
"It's not clear why Caltrans and the CHP can't" pay for at least part of it, Bill Dodd said.
Steve Heminger, executive director of the regional Metropolitan Transportation Commission, said that the new eastern span is a terrorist target just like the Golden Gate Bridge.
