Folding Bikes on Muni

Muni has recently decided to allow folding bikes aboard all buses and streetcars, excluding the historic cable cars.

Bike advocates including Bert Hill, chairman of the SF Bicycle Advisory Committee, have been lobbying for all bikes to be allowed onto Muni buses. Nevertheless, Hill and others see this as a step in the right direction. Spokesman Paul Rose of the MTA believes this policy will promote the city's transit-first policy which, according to the Chronicle, "aims to get people out of their cars to cut down on air pollution and traffic congestion."

However, Rose also warns that officials need to keep an eye on how this change will affect commuters. Because while Hill and other bike advocates have responded positively to this announcement, many comments on this article--by mostly non-biking commuters--are not nearly as welcoming. The topics of criticisms range from demanding bikers pay extra to complaining that bikes will overcrowd already overcrowded buses. Such comments included:

JuniperoSerra: Bad idea! Who wants to get dirt from their tires or grease from the bike's chain on their clothes when these folks take their folding bikes onto a crowed [sic] bus or streetcar.

ender_of_sf: Things are bad enough on our too often overcrowded busses [sic] as it is, espeically [sic] during commute hours. Why do bike riders think the public transit should haul their vehicals [sic] around at no extra charge when they don't feel like riding them.

sfnative650: So now some guy rides his bike up to the bus and everybody has to wait for him to fold up his bike? And then they get to trip over it trying to get in or out the bus? Looks like lawsuits here...Aren't bikes to be ridden and not ride on a bus? How about the bus tow a trailer behind it so you can store your car and ride the bus?

qframer: I'm a folding bike rider. I love them. I am a member of bicycle advocacy groups, and I want transit options for bikes.

But this is INSANITY. There is no way I can fit comfortably in any Muni vehicle with my folding bike unless it is nearly empty. I can't believe both Muni and Bicycle Coalition people put this much effort into something that will only build resentment toward cyclists.

What are your thoughts?

Muni Overtime Budget Exceeds Expectations

Muni's budget for overtime this year was $30.8 million out of a total budget of $775 million. Now overtime has gone up $18 million to $48.3 million. Why?

A normal day for Muni requires 1,491 operators to run all services. And also on any normal day, they are short 300 of those required operators (which might explain why your bus never seems to be coming). Muni officials say that if they were to decrease the budget for overtime, buses would have to run less frequently, angering more passengers.

However, passengers are already angry. Comments in Chronicle article say things like, "The riding public will not miss the runs as it'll just be normal riding Muni" and "Is anyone working for this agency competent? Problems with drivers are well known, but it's pretty clear that management (especially the absentee Nat Ford) are a pack of idiots as well."

And the criticisms aren't just coming from the public, but from city officials as well. Board President David Chiu is accusing Muni officials for not taking their budget mishaps seriously, saying, "The years of promises remind me of Groundhog Day. Management is far better at providing excuses than delivering results."

Source: http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/blogs/cityinsider/detail?entry_id=88891