Caltrain to San Francisco Costs $14 Starting Friday

While Gilroy avoided , train commuters will still be paying an extra 25 cents for each zone of track they travel starting next month.

The extra fare will bring the total cost of a one-way trip to San Francisco to $14.00, up from $12.50, according to Caltrain.

Bay Area transit riders and some motorists crossing local bridges will be asked to pay more beginning Friday.

The changes include:

• End to Hybrid Free-Ride: Solo hybrid drivers will no longer be able to use the carpool lane.

• VTA: No fare increases. A series of route changes will take effect July 11, altering the schedule or route of several lines. Some lines will be expanding service.

• Caltrain: Each zone traveled will cost an additional 25 cents

• San Francisco Muni: $2 more for a monthly pass; $1 more for seniors. Cable car rides are up to $6.

• Golden Gate Transit: 25 percent more for the Larkspur ferry and busses. Sausalito ferries are up $1. Special ferries will cost $8.75 a trip.

• Bridge tolls: Vehicles with more than two axles will pay between $10.50–$24.25 on state-owned bridges. Tolls on the Golden Gate Bridge will be between $13–$31 for more than two axles.

The San Francisco Municipal Transportation Agency is bumping up the prices of items including monthly passes, cable car fares and parking permits.

The cost of the Muni monthly passes will increase by $2 for adults, and $1 for seniors, youths and the disabled. Cable car fares are jumping from $5 to $6, while the city's annual parking permits are increasing by $2, according to Muni officials.

Golden Gate Transit buses and ferries will also become more expensive to ride.The bus fares and Larkspur ferry fares are increasing by 5 percent. Sausalito ferry riders will now pay an additional $1 on their fare, and the fare for special event ferries to AT&T Park in San Francisco is increasing to $8.75, according to the transit district.

On Bay Area bridges, tolls will increase for vehicles with more than two axles, including big-rigs and cars with boats or other trailers attached to them.

On the region's seven state-owned bridges, the new toll will range from $10.50 to $24.25, depending on the number of axles, while the Golden Gate Bridge's tolls for multi-axle vehicles will rise to between $13 and $31, with discounts available for FasTrak users.

Also starting Friday, hybrid car drivers will lose a perk of driving their fuel-efficient vehicles.

Since 2004, solo drivers of hybrid vehicles with yellow clean-air stickers have been able to drive in carpool lanes, but that privilege will no longer be afforded, according to the state's Department of Motor Vehicles.

All-electric vehicles with white stickers will still be able to drive solo in the carpool lanes until 2015, according to the DMV.

The various increases are the result of local and state agencies trying to close large budget deficits as the new fiscal year begins Friday.

The SFMTA faced a $45 million budget shortfall this year, while the Golden Gate Bridge District faces a five-year deficit of $89 million.

-By Eric Gneckow and Bay City News