Despite California reopening more than a month ago, San Francisco travel in and out of the city has been lagging.
When compared to pre-pandemic levels, traffic by bus and ferry over and under the Golden Gate Bridge is down 20%, Transportation District Public Affairs Manager Paolo Cosulich-Schwartz told KCBS Radio.
“We expect some change in the future,” said Cosulich-Schwartz, "but traffic may never return to the rates we observed pre-pandemic."
Much of the current traffic due to weekend and off-peak travel, when people visit the city for day trips or to attend Giants games, as weekday commuter levels are still low ranging at 40%.
Even though revenue has been down, Cosulich-Schwartz was happy to tell KCBS Radio that no jobs have been impacted.
The Golden Gate Bridge, Highway and Transportation District is a recipient of a federal assistance coronavirus relief bill that supplemented employees' payroll to preserve bridge maintenance.
"These service jobs are necessary and highly important," said Cosulich-Schwartz.
It will be interesting to see how public transportation rates change once San Francisco companies and businesses fully return to in-person work.
