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Dublin Today
By the People, for the People
New Express Lane Coming To East Bay Freeway Friday
The new lane will not begin charging tolls immediately, Caltrans said, but will eventually be limited to FasTrak holders.
Published on Feb. 10, 2026
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A new Express Lane will open Friday morning on southbound I-680 and run roughly 10 miles from San Ramon Road and Alcosta Boulevard in Dublin to the intersection with State Route 84 in Sunol, Caltrans announced. No tolls will be charged until the tolling system completes integration and testing, but the lane will eventually be limited to FasTrak holders.
Why it matters
Express lanes are a growing trend across the Bay Area, designed to improve traffic flow, but some have criticized them as a cash grab that could lead to heavier traffic in the non-express lanes.
The details
The new lane is one of several cropping up across the Bay Area ostensibly designed to improve traffic flow along the corridor. To use the express lane, all vehicles must either have a FasTrak toll tag, or have three or more people and a FasTrek toll tag set to the 3+ position. Two-person carpools will be able to pay half-price tolls with a FasTrak Flex tag set to '2.' Tolls can range from 50 cents to as high as $20, depending on traffic.
- The new Express Lane will open on Friday, February 14, 2026.
- The tolling system is still undergoing integration and testing, so no tolls will be charged immediately.
- The El Cerro on-ramp in Danville will be closed intermittently until June 2026, impacting traffic flow on I-680 southbound.
The players
Caltrans
The California Department of Transportation, the state agency responsible for managing and maintaining California's transportation infrastructure.
What’s next
The tolling system for the new Express Lane is still undergoing integration and testing, so no specific timeline has been provided for when tolls will begin being charged.
The takeaway
The new Express Lane on I-680 in the East Bay is part of a broader trend of adding toll-based express lanes in the Bay Area, which aim to improve traffic flow but have also faced criticism from some residents who view them as a cash grab that could worsen congestion in the non-express lanes.
