Atlantic Beach Bridge tolls to jump 50 percent in the new year

When it comes to getting to the Atlantic Ocean — and specifically the seaside community of Atlantic Beach — Valley Stream residents and their neighbors have long appreciated the convenience of the Atlantic Beach Bridge. Motorists make their way through the Five Towns and cross the bridge, paying $2 each way.

Come Jan. 1, however, the Nassau County Bridge Authority will be rolling out its first toll increases since 2007.

“The new toll rate schedule was approved in 2022 after a rigorous review process, and there will be no further planned increases for the next five years,” bridge authority officials stated in a news release earlier this month.

The toll for passenger vehicles will increase to $3 starting in the new year. Trucks tolls will bump up from $4 to $8 or from $8 to $16, based on vehicle size.

When the E-ZPass system is introduced at the bridge next year, the fare for non-Nassau County motorists will jump to $4. The transponders of drivers with E-ZPass accounts will determine whether their vehicles are registered within or outside the county. All motorists without E-ZPass will be charged $4.

“The decision to raise tolls does not come lightly,” Nassau County Bridge Authority Chairman Samuel Nahmias said. “Especially at a time when our residents are hurting due to high inflation.”

The increases are required to keep the authority viable, Nahmias said. Unlike other bridges across New York, the authority’s revenue is generated only from tolls; it has no state or federal funding.

Increasing revenue will allow for upgrades to the 70-year-old, 1,173-foot-long bridge, including $6 million needed for cleaning, painting and roadwork; $5 million to install E-ZPass and for toll plaza refurbishment; and $5 million for bulkhead replacement. The bride authority expects E-ZPass to be implemented by mid-2023.

On Facebook, motorists expressed frustration with eliminating annual decals once E-ZPass is operating. The price of a decal is currently $130. To counter what was considered misinformation being spread on the social media platform, Nahmias stated in the Dec. 5 news release that decals will be incorporated into the E-ZPass system.

Bridge authority board member Shalom Maidenbaum offered further clarification in a Facebook post. “The benefits that existed before are simply going to be incorporated into the E-Z Pass system,” Maidenbaum wrote. “The annual resident discounted rate will increase to only $199. While it represents an increase over the present discounted rate, it is necessary for the continued operation of the bridge.”

Atlantic Beach resident Barry Ringelheim said he wonders why the authority needs a sudden increase in tolls when it spent $9.9 million to restore the bridge in 2017. Ringelheim does, however, look forward to using E-ZPass on the bridge.

“I don’t mind the E-ZPass,” he said. “I want proof that it was necessary to raise the tolls, and if in 2022 the bridge makes money or loses money.” Nahmias said the authority lost nearly $1 million over the past three years, and was on track to lose $2 million in 2023.

Earlier this year, the authority created, and then disbanded, the Atlantic Beach Bridge Citizens’ Committee, with the purpose of encouraging input from community members. It consisted of 12 members, one of whom, Woodmere resident Asher Matathias, said he believes the bridge authority should be disbanded. “The time has long been here to bury the bridge authority and permit the easing of its transfer to Nassau County,” Matathias said.

Ringelheim called for members of the authority to come to an Atlantic Beach village board meeting on Monday, to hear what commuters had to say about the decision to raise the tolls.

At the meeting, no authority members were in evidence, and Atlantic Beach Mayor George Pappas spoke only briefly about the tolls, emphasizing that the village was not involved.

He suggested to those in attendance that they attend a meeting planned by the authority at its headquarters on the bridge, scheduled for Thursday at 6:30 p.m., at which the tolls were expected to be the main topic of discussion.

Have an opinion about the Atlantic Beach Bridge? Send an email to jlasso@liherald.com.