San Francisco – Oakland Bay Bridge

The Bay Bridge Trail: Pedal Across the Bay

One of the most rewarding ways to experience the Bay Bridge is on two wheels or on foot. The Bay Bridge Trail, opened alongside the new eastern span in 2013, carries pedestrians and cyclists 2.2 miles across the skyway from Oakland's shoreline to Yerba Buena Island. At 15.5 feet wide, the dedicated path features two bike lanes and a separate pedestrian lane, with a built-in venting system that pulls car exhaust away from trail users.↗↗

Seven "belvederes" — observation platforms spaced along the path — invite you to stop and take in panoramic views of the Port of Oakland, the East Bay hills, Alcatraz, and the San Francisco skyline. The trail is open daily from 6:00 AM to 9:00 PM. From the Oakland side, the most popular access point is the Shellmound Street Trailhead near MacArthur BART station. Cyclists should note the 15-mph advisory speed limit, and that skateboards and scooters are not permitted.↗↗

The trail currently ends at Yerba Buena Island — a bicycle/pedestrian connection to San Francisco proper does not yet exist, though the ambitious Bay Skyway project aims to extend the path all the way to downtown SF. For now, riders can use the MUNI 25 bus or the AC Transit Transbay bus to reach the toll plaza area from San Francisco.↗↗↗

The Bay Lights: A Sequined Gown on the Bridge

Widely considered one of the world's great public artworks, The Bay Lights transforms the western span of the bridge into a 1.8-mile canvas of living light. Artist Leo Villareal's installation uses individually controllable LEDs strung along the suspension cables, generating ever-shifting sequences that look like champagne bubbles, birds, and flowing amoebae drifting across the steel structure. The artwork was the brainchild of Illuminate founder Ben Davis and has become one of San Francisco's most iconic visual experiences.↗↗

The installation debuted in March 2013 with 25,000 LEDs, quickly becoming beloved enough to warrant a return in 2016. After nearly a decade, salt air and corrosion forced the lights to go dark in 2023. But Illuminate raised $11 million to rebuild and double the installation, and in March 2026 The Bay Lights 360 returned with 50,000 LEDs on a custom-engineered system designed to last at least a decade. The "360" addition means lights are now placed on both sides of the cables, eventually making the spectacle visible from Oakland, Berkeley, Emeryville, and even from drivers on the bridge itself.↗↗↗↗

The best viewing spots for the Bay Lights are along the Embarcadero waterfront, from Rincon Park, from the Ferry Building, or from ferry decks crossing the bay. On clear nights, the lights can be seen from neighborhoods across San Francisco and the East Bay. Villareal's software generates sequences that never repeat in exactly the same way, so no two evenings look alike.↗↗

Vista Points and Shoreline Parks

At the western end of the Bay Bridge Trail, the Bimla Rhinehart Vista Point on Yerba Buena Island offers an unparalleled close-up view of the new east span's tower and suspension cables. Built atop Pier E-2 of the original east span, which supported the old cantilever for 77 years, the vista point incorporates repurposed steel from the old bridge trusses in its handrails, communal table, and bike racks. Adjacent to the point is the former Torpedo Storehouse, a National Register of Historic Places site and the last remnant of Camp Yerba Buena, a former U.S. Army installation.↗

On the Oakland side, Judge John Sutter Regional Shoreline (opened October 2020) is a 22.5-acre waterfront park at the bridge's eastern foot. Its star feature is a grand 600-foot-long observation pier built on remaining support piers from the original east span, offering sweeping bay views and easy access to the Bay Bridge Trail. A renovated 1930s-era electric train maintenance building called the Bridge Yard hosts community events. The park also tells the layered story of this shoreline — from the Key System electric railway that once carried passengers across the bridge's lower deck to the Oakland Army Base that operated here from 1941 to 1999.↗↗

Planning Your Visit

The Bay Bridge Trail is free and open daily 6:00 AM to 9:00 PM (the access paths are open 24/7). The Bimla Rhinehart Vista Point opens one hour before sunrise and closes one hour after sunset. No toll is required for trail users — the toll ($8.50 as of 2026) applies only to westbound vehicles and is collected on the Oakland side via FasTrak or pay-by-plate.↗↗↗

For cyclists and pedestrians, the easiest access from the East Bay is the Shellmound Street Trailhead in Emeryville, reachable from MacArthur BART station by riding west on 40th Street. Limited parking is available at the Burma Road Trailhead in Oakland near the Bridge Yard building. From San Francisco, the AC Transit Transbay bus drops passengers at the eastbound toll plaza on the bridge itself.↗↗

To see the Bay Lights, visit any evening after sunset. The most dramatic free vantage points are along the Embarcadero between the Ferry Building and Brannan Street Wharf, or from Rincon Park at the foot of the bridge. The lights are visible from ferry crossings, and the viewing experience is enhanced on clear, fog-free nights.↗↗

Beyond the Crossing

The Bay Bridge is more than infrastructure — it is a living piece of Bay Area history that you can experience from multiple angles. Walk or ride its deck for a physical sense of its extraordinary scale. Stand at its overlooks and understand why a trans-bay crossing has captivated the region's imagination since the 1850s. Or simply watch from the Embarcadero at night as fifty thousand lights turn its cables into breathing art. Few bridges anywhere offer so many ways to engage.↗↗