FasTrak (which we admit to sometimes spelling FastTrak or FasTrack or FastTrack or That-Little-White-Box-on-the-Dash-That-Beeps-in-the-Toll-Plaza) is an automatic toll charging system that lets you skip the toll-takers at the Golden Gate Bridge and other Bay Area bridges.
On the Golden Gate Bridge FasTrak works in any toll lane, even if a toll collector is there. For safety reasons, please slow down, use caution (and wave hello and smile if someone is there) while passing through the toll lane.
Other Bay Area bridges may have lanes in which you must pay cash and in which your FasTrak transponder will not be recognized. It's also recognized at places like some of the parking lots at SFO... which surprised the heck out of us the first time it happened and the gate bar just jumped up when we approached!
You can open a FasTrak account on the FasTrak website, or call 1-877-229-8655 (415-486-8655 outside California).
For more information about FasTrak, visit their website.
We do get asked, "How do they catch people who don't pay? The Golden Gate Bridge toll plaza is designed with toll violation enforcement video cameras that capture the license plate of every car. If you don't have a valid FasTrak and you use the Fastrak lane they trace the license plate number and charge you a fine.
Once in a great while a FasTrak unit won't trigger the sensing equipment and you can be charged a penalty by mistake. If this happens you can call 1-877-229-8655, tell them about the problem and they'll tell you what to do to get the fine turned into a normal toll charge.
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