SF 'Running Out of Options': Lawmaker Rejects Newsom Veto of Lombard Street Toll

A state lawmaker who introduced a bill that would allow San Francisco to impose a toll on the famously crooked section of Lombard Street has said the "city is running out of options" after Gov. Gavin Newsom vetoed the legislation over the weekend.

Newsom said he was concerned AB 1605 would create “social equity issues.”

The bill by Assemblyman Phil Ting, D-San Francisco, would have implemented a toll and reservation system for sightseers to drive down the popular tourist attraction.

Ting said Monday that he was "obviously disappointed" by Newsom's veto, but that he would work with the governor and local residents and officials to come up with an alternate solution. Ting said earlier on Twitter that the city was "running out of options"

"This is something that has been getting worse and worse over time," he said in an interview. "Lombard Street on a busy summer day could get up to 17,000 visitors on one city block. That is really one hell of a block party.

"If we really want to make sure that we're managing congestion, making the experience pleasurable, we really need to make sure that we're better managing traffic as well as pedestrians," he added.

Tourism officials estimate that 6,000 people a day visit the 600-foot-long section of the street in the summer, creating lines of cars stretching for blocks. The San Francisco County Transportation Authority (SFCTA) had recommended a $5 per car charge on weekdays and $10 on weekends and holidays.

Andrew Heidel, a SFCTA senior transportation planner, told a state Senate committee earlier this year that Lombard Street attracts over 2 million visitors a year, but there’s no way to manage them.

While Newsom sympathized with these concerns, he said the toll and reservation system wasn't the answer in his veto message on Saturday.

“As the former county supervisor representing this neighborhood, I am acutely aware of the need to address congestion and safety around Lombard Street. However, the pricing program proposed in this bill creates social equity issues,” Newsom said.

“Access to this iconic attraction should be available to all, regardless of their ability to pay,” he added.

Ting said he believed the legislation had addressed equity issues, noting the reservation system was only for cars — pedestrians could walk down that section of Lombard Street for free.

"Clearly that wasn't enough," Ting said.

A 2017 study by the SFCTA said managing access to Lombard Street is needed as crowd control issues for the attraction have become more challenging.

KQED's Miranda Leitsinger contributed to this post.