San Francisco Municipal Railway
From SFWiki
The San Francisco Municipal Railway, commonly called Muni, is the public transit agency for the City and County of San Francisco.
The normal fare is $1.50, with the fare receipt/transfer valid for a 90 minute window on any muni vehicle aside from the cable cars. The disabled, people aged 5-17, and people over 65 pay $0.50. The Cable Cars fare is separate from the rest of muni with a one-way fare costing $5.00. A monthly "Fast Pass" as well as various week and day passes are also available.
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Operations
Muni's operations include:
- 55 bus lines
- 16 trolley bus lines
- 5 light rail lines (called Muni Metro)
- 3 cable car lines
- 1 streetcar line.
Leadership
Since early 2006, the current Executive Director and CEO of the Municipal Transit Agency is Nathaniel P. Ford, Sr.
Muni's head from 2003 to 2005 was Michael Burns. He was briefly followed by Stuart Sunshine, who served as acting director while a new Executive Director/CEO was selected.
Cable Cars
One of San Francisco's most well know icons, three cable car lines are in operation today.
Cable cars were invented here in San Francisco by Andrew Hallidie after he witnessed an accident in 1869 where a team of horses gave out pulling an overloaded streetcar up one of San Francisco's steep hills. There are no motors or engines on a cable car, instead Hallidie's system uses a steel cable running in a loop below the street. Cable cars move by gripping onto that rope through the slot in the middle of the tracks where the gripping mechanism extends below the ground.
The first cable car line, the Clay Street line, opened in 1873. Of the lines operating today, the California line opened in 1878, though shortened from it's original route. The Powell-Mason line has run the same route since it opened in 1888 and though the Powell-Hyde line is not authentic in the strictest sense of the word, there has been service along Hyde street since 1891.
Practical information: the cable cars do not share the same pricing as the rest of Muni, one way fare is $5.00, with no transfers accepted or given. Unlimited cable car use is included in a monthly Fast Pass, without any additional fee.
Expansion
Muni Metro
T-Third Street - Muni is completing construction of a new Third Street line, which runs from existing Metro (subway) service down Third Street into Bayview/Hunter's Point. Free demonstration service is planned to begin January 12, 2007 on weekends only, with full time revenue service planned to begin on April 7, 2007. There has been considerable controvery surrounding the feasibility of the line, with critics worrying that it will not carry enough passengers. Proponents of the line predict that its presence will encourage development, and that ridership will increase as people move to be closer to the line.
Central Subway - The next phase of the Third Street project is to continue the line up Fourth Street from the Caltrain depot where it will go enter a tunnel portal beneath the freeway and continue as a subway up to Market Street where it will turn slightly and continue along Stockton Street to Chinatown. A surface station will be located at Fourth and Brannan (already the most used 30/45 stop in SOMA) and subway stations will be located at Fourth and Howard (Moscone Station), Stockton between O'Farrell and Geary (Union Square/Market Street Station will be linked to Powell Station at the concourse level) and the final station will be located in Chinatown between Washington and Jackson. For more details and a map, visit sfcityscape.com's overview.
Historic Streetcars
E-Embarcadero - Plans have long been in the works to open a second historic Streetcar line along the Embarcadero. Side platforms, and even "E-Line" signs, are already in place along the Embarcadero south of the Ferry Building which is now used by the N-Judah metro line. Various reasons, including having enough working streetcars to run a second line, budget constraints and now startup of the T-Third Street line, have held back opening the line.
Fort Mason Extension - From where the F-Market & Wharves ends near Fisherman's Wharf today, the line would be continued past Aquatic Park into the well preserved, but long closed, Fort Mason Tunnel to Fort Mason itself where it would turn back in a loop. The National Parks Service is very interested in Fort Mason connected to the other tourist destinations to attract both tourist and locals alike.
The web site historicstreetcarextension.org has been set up where you can find more information, view the different routing options, and give feedback.
Improvement Projects
Bus Rapid Transit - In partnership with the San Francisco County Transit Authority, the MTA is considering building Bus Rapid Transit lanes on Geary Boulevard and Van Ness Avenue. BRT lanes running in the middle of the street, between lanes of traffic, would allow busses to move faster and without obstructing cars. On Geary Boulevard, BRT plans are opposed by David Heller, the head of the Geary Merchants' Association. On Van Ness, car dealerships have expressed opposition to BRT construction. Critics of the BRT plans generally are motivated by concerns for zoning changes, disruptive construction, and decreased capacity for cars; however, some of the plans proposed by the SFCTA would result in an increased capacity for automobile traffic because of the space freed up by moving busses and bus stops out of the roadway.
Transit Effectiveness Project - An 18 month project by the MTA to find and fix the small problems with Muni which add up to major delay. Quick fixes will begin being implemented in January (likely small projects such as adding or replacing signs, no-parking at busy stops during rush hour) and a more comprehensive set of changes to begin after the study is complete. Examples of what we can expect will be things like adding more bus only lanes, relocating/removing/adding stops, and retiming lights. Light times are a perfect example of small delays that add up. Busses often dwell at a stop picking up and dropping off riders just a few seconds longer than the light is green, extending a green light by a few seconds saves a bus having to wait through the entire light cycle.
The web site sftep.org has more information about the project, upcoming meetings and contact information if you have questions or would like to let them know of a recurring problem you experience.
Outside Links
- Route Guide - routes and stops, frequency and accessibility
