Comments on: 1.47 gallons for public transit

By: david vartanoff

david vartanoff — Wed, 14 Mar 2007 00:36:04 +0000

nice as the increased transit stats are, the local picture is far from rosy. Although BART set a Saturday record, and their daily figures are improving, Muni has LOST 90,000+ over the last five years. This is a real sign of disaster as Muni operates 24/7, comes very close to most homes/businesses in SF, and in theory offers a real alternative in a fairly dense city with many likely short trips. The problem of course is that the buses and trolley coaches DON’T show up! BTW the Cable Cars even at their ripoff $5 have not lost many riders.

By: Capricious Commuter

Capricious Commuter — Tue, 13 Mar 2007 20:21:35 +0000

Doug, I feel your pain. When I worked in LA and people noticed that I sometimes rode a bus, they treated me with pity, or as one might a crazy person. Luckily, in the circles I travel in these days, taking public transit or riding my bike to a meeting is pretty well-regarded. One of my colleagues arrived at yesterday’s event via BART, and I ended up driving him back to his office.

By: Doug Faunt

Doug Faunt — Tue, 13 Mar 2007 19:39:21 +0000

“Now I’ve done this before and hitched a ride with Caltrans on these Bay Bridge construction tours, but that’s not always possible in other work situations. I.e., cars give us more flexibility, and that’s difficult to set aside.”

Part of the problem here is that the assumption is made that you’ll be in a car, therefore situations are set up where a car is almost necessary.

Last week, I was in that sort of situation, and because I arranged an alternative, was asked if I’d had my driving license revoked or suspended. I’ve also been asked if the motor vehicle I own is functioning, or if I can’t afford insurance.