If you keep up with the local news, you may recognize Priya Clemens, who is now the director of public affairs for the Golden Gate Bridge, Highway & Transportation District.
Priya Clemens, the director of public affairs for the Golden Gate Bridge, Highway & Transportation District is no stranger to broadcast news. She has worked as a KTVU reporter and for NBC and CBS news.
BY MATT LARSON
Published: June, 2018
If you keep up with the local news, you may recognize Priya Clemens, who is now the director of public affairs for the Golden Gate Bridge, Highway & Transportation District. You may know her from her days as a reporter for KTVU, or as a national news correspondent and anchor for CBS News, or as a presidential campaign news producer at NBC News. Golden Gate is her first foray into public affairs, but now at over three years of experience with the district, she has made a home for herself here.
“I feel truly honored to be working for this international icon and local treasure, and to be representing the many ways in which the district helps people travel across the Bay Area,” she said. “When this job opened up I felt the Golden Gate Bridge District was an agency I would be proud to represent, and that has remained true.”
At this writing, Clemens had just finished informing the public on local news about the rope inspectors who made history by being the first team to rappel down the Golden Gate Bridge towers to examine every seam and rivet for signs of erosion or decay. Up next for Golden Gate is to begin the final phase of the bridge’s seismic retrofit, installing a new toll gantry, and this summer they’ll begin construction on their suicide deterrent system.
But what about the ferries? “The ferry is absolutely one of our best loved ways to travel across the Bay,” Clemens said. “It used to be that you could leave downtown San Francisco in the evening commute, and by the time you reached central Marin you arrived at about the same time the ferry arrived, maybe even a little sooner. But as traffic has become worse on the roads, the ferry generally beats drivers there.”
Golden Gate’s only problem is meeting the massive demand for the ferry. “We’re currently limited to 42 trips a day,” she said. Clemens explained that this limit was set by Golden Gate’s board of directors following an environmental review several years ago—a lengthy process which they’ll need to undertake again if they decide to expand the schedule.
“It’s absolutely a worthy process to go through, and an important one,” Clemens said of revisiting the environmental review, “but it also is going to take some time.” Clemens said that the agency feels like it has the demand to justify increasing the number of trips, and discussions are underway.
Born in Madras, India (now Chennai), Clemens grew up in Brussels and London. She now lives in Alameda with her husband, Alex, and her children, Casey Rose (age 7) and Benjy (6). Next month she and her family will be moving to Marin, so she’ll be even closer to her beloved Golden Gate Bridge. An avid reader, Clemens suggests the Inspector Gamache series by Louis Penny for those who love mysteries. She’s also a big Westworld and Game of Thrones fan, so keep any spoilers to yourself.
Clemens explained how Golden Gate Bridge’s different transportation modes all support each other. “During peak hours, our buses and ferries take 20 percent of the traffic off of the Highway 101 corridor,” she said. “Our bridge tolls go to subsidize our bus and ferry service, and drivers then benefit as well, as the highway is less congested.” So remember folks, we’re all in this together.
Clemens also explained that Golden Gate Bridge District is constantly looking for ways to better the public’s commuting experience. Whether it be adding more runs, helping commuters park at Larkspur, or improving the carpool lanes, Clemens assured us that they’re always thinking of new ways to help.
If you missed Clemens discussing Golden Gate news on TV, you can keep up with all things Golden Gate at goldengatebridge.org.
