Bay Area Express Lanes FAQ

Express Lanes are specially designated highway lanes that offer solo drivers the choice to save time by paying tolls while rewarding carpools, motorcycles, and transit riders with travel time savings for free or discounted tolls.

Express lanes provide solo drivers the choice to pay for faster trips when needed and reward carpoolers, vanpoolers, motorcycles and transit riders with faster trips at lower or cost.

You can use express lanes on the following highways during the times shown. Click the links for maps of each express lane.

• I-80 Express Lanes: 5am - 8pm. 7 days a week
• I-580 Express Lanes: 5am - 8pm. Monday - Friday
• I-680 Contra Costa Express Lanes: 5am - 8pm. Monday - Friday
• I-680 Sunol Express Lanes: 5am - 8pm. Monday - Friday
• I-880 Express Lanes: 5am - 8pm. Monday - Friday
• US-101 Express Lanes: 5am - 8pm. Monday - Friday
• SR-237 Express Lanes: 5am - 8pm. Monday - Friday

Yes, FasTrak^® is required on all Bay Area Express Lanes. Carpools, vanpools and motorcycles can only travel toll-free free or at half-price with FasTrak Flex toll tags set to 2 or 3+. Solo drivers must have a FasTrak account to pay express lane tolls. Drivers who use the lanes without FasTrak receive toll violations.  Learn more about the express lanes FasTrak® requirements.

New to FasTrak? Open an account and get a FasTrak Flex Toll Tag: 

• Online
• In Person at Costco or the FasTrak Walk-in Center
• By Phone or Mail

Learn more about getting started with FasTrak®.

Already have a FasTrak account? Each FasTrak account may have up to 4 toll tags.

• Sign in to your FasTrak account at bayareafastrak.org
• Click "manage tags & vehicle"
• Click "order a toll tag" 

Toll-free Travelers:

• 3+ person carpools with a FasTrak Flex tag to 3+
• Motorcycles with a FasTrak Flex tag to 3+
• Vanpools with a FasTrak Flex tag to 3+
• 2-person carpools on I-680 and I-580 with a FasTrak Flex tag to 2
• 2-person carpools in 2-seater vehicles with a FasTrak Flex tag to 3+
• Transit vehicles

50% Discounted Travelers:

• 2-person carpools on I-80, I-880, US-101 and SR-237 with a FasTrak Flex tag to 2
• Income-qualified drivers using the I-80 or I-880 Express Lanes who are enrolled in the Express Lanes START program

Visit carpool.511.org to find a carpool through the Bay Area Commuter Carpool Network. Visit vanpool.511.org to learn more about vanpooling. These web pages also have information about carpool rewards and vanpooling subsidies. 

Solo drivers pay to use the express lanes and 2-person carpools pay half-price tolls to use the express lanes on I-80, I-880, US-101 and SR-237. 

The amount you pay depends on how far you drive in the express lane and how heavy traffic is. Tolls increase as traffic increases and decrease as traffic decreases. 

The express lanes are broken down into toll zones. For example, a 20-mile express lane could have 4 or 5 toll zones. Overhead signs tell you how much you'll pay to travel in that zone and to a destination beyond that zone. The cost for a single zone may range from $0.50 to $15.00 depending on traffic and location of the zone.

You are guaranteed that you won't pay more than the price you see on the toll sign at the time you enter the express lane (as long as you don't exit and re-enter the lane). 

For more information, watch our two-minute video to learn how much Express Lanes cost(opens in a new window).

Drivers can enter and exit express lanes wherever there are dashed lines. Where express lanes are separated from general purpose lanes by solid double lines, access to or from the express lane is illegal. Learn more about getting in and out of Express Lanes.

Tolls are collected electronically using FasTrak®. Electronic readers identify toll tags in vehicles and apply the appropriate tolls to the FasTrak account. When FasTrak Flex toll tags are set to the 2 or 3+ position, the appropriate discount is applies. Tolls are collected only during the express lane hours of operation.

When a vehicle does not have a toll tag, cameras capture the vehicle's license plate. The license plate is matched to a FasTrak account and the toll is applied. If the license plate does not match to a FasTrak account, the driver is mailed an invoice for the toll plus a penalty. 

When a driver uses an express lane without FasTrak (or other electronic tolling account, like EZ Pass), an image of the license plate is used to identify the vehicle. The vehicle owner is mailed an invoice for the unpaid toll as well as a $10 penalty fee. If the driver does not pay the toll and penalty fee on time, the vehicle owner receives a second notice with an additional $20 penalty.

If you accidentally used an express lane without FasTrak or if you forget to switch your toll tag while carpooling, call the FasTrak Customer Service Center at 877-BAY-TOLL (977-229-8655).