Garcon Point Bridge toll to rise 50 cents

• $2.50 charge is most expensive among Northwest Florida spans

Louis Cooper@PensacolaNewsJournal.com

Drivers who use the Garcon Point Bridge will pay $2.50 to cross the span starting July 1.

That's up 50 cents.

The bridge will become the most expensive toll facility in Northwest Florida. The Navarre Bridge toll is 50 cents, the Pensacola Beach Bridge costs $1 and crossing the Mid-Bay Bridge in Okaloosa is $2. There are no toll facilities in Walton County.

Authority Chairman Hal Danley said bond documents require the authority to keep 125 percent of the next likely payment on hand.

``We've never fallen short of that,'' Danley said. ``But it's projected that we need to increase (the toll) to be able to do that in the future.'' Danley said a 25-cent increase was planned from the begining, but the toll needed to be more.

The authority is bound by its bond agreement to follow the recommendation of its traffic consultant, he explained. The consultant, he said, is convinced that even if fewer cars use the bridge because of the increase, the added toll will increase the bridge's revenue.

However, people who use SunPass - the prepaid, electronic, toll-collection system - will get a 50 percent discount upon their 15th trip within a calendar month instead of the 30th trip, when the discount kicks in now.

In January, a national, bond- rating firm lowered the rating on the bridge's bonds to ``junk bond'' level because of the likely inability of the bridge to make its payments.

Although traffic counts have not met expectations, the traffic has steadily increased. According to information from the bridge's Web site _ www.garconpointbridge.com _ 100,266 vehicles crossed the bridge in February, the most recent month posted. That's up from 89,031 in February 2000.

``We expect our traffic to continue to increase,'' Danley said. ``Anybody who sees the growth like I see it knows there's bound to be increases.''

Revenue

Garcon Point Bridge has never met projected usage since it opened in May 1999. Although updated figures were not immediately available Tuesday, previous reports put the toll bridge's revenues at about half of projections.