Municipal Transportation Authority

Lech Walesa Street: Jane Kim Ready for a Change

Last week, Supervisor David Campos told SF Weekly that he'd be open to starting a dialogue about whether to strip Lech Walesa's name off a city street.Supervisor Jane Kim is ready to move past all that. She wants Walesa gone. Step one, however, is figuring out who to call. Kim aide Ivy Lee says that ... More >>

Inefficient by Design: San Francisco's Commissions Are Uncountable — and Unaccountable

Progressives' Muni Charter Amendment Finalized

​If ever a Muni rider -- packed into a sweaty, steaming bus or train in the midst of an interminable delay -- dreamed of taking revenge via the ballot box, oh happy day: Your dreams are coming true. There will be not one but two Muni-related charter amendments on the ballot come November. Sean Els ... More >>

Muni Budget Leaves Board Prez David Chiu Mystified

N-Judah Chronicles/Lauren Oliver -- Used with PermissionBoard President David Chiu to Muni: Show me the money! ​Board of Supervisors President David Chiu likes to remind people that he's a Muni rider. Come May 8, with 10 percent service cuts taking effect, he'll be a Muni waiter, just like everyon ... More >>

Worst Monday Morning Yet: In Line to Shell Out for Parking Tickets

Joe EskenaziDoes the party ever stop? ​If you're reading this, it indicates that you have made it through Monday morning and are now enjoying a majestic Monday afternoon. You are to be congratulated. And however unpleasant your Monday morning was, odds are it paled in comparison to that experience ... More >>

Hot ticket: Politicos pitch in — unwillingly — to alleviate city deficit

Lawyer: Thousands of Legally Parked S.F. Cars Dubiously Towed

Back off, pal!​Last week we reported on San Francisco parking celebrity John J. Riley, who filed a class-action suit claiming the city improperly towed his car -- and legions of others. The crux of the case is this: The city claims it has the right to haul off legally parked private vehicles after ... More >>

S.F. Man Files Suit, Alleges City Improperly Towed His Car -- And Perhaps Legions More

Not so fast, pal...​John J. Riley could be considered a hero to the city's beleaguered parkers. He successfully petitioned the city to drop a citation he was given after his car was ticketed and towed. Now he's gunning for deity status, last month filing a class-action suit claiming the Department ... More >>

No, Motorists Cannot Put 'Smart Boot' On Other People's Cars

PayLockThe 'Smart Boot'​Apparently the "Smart Boot" people are one bootstep ahead of us. The devices are just like the boots you'd find, say, immobilizing Supervisor Ross Mirkarimi's 1993 Jeep Wrangler. But instead of requiring an employee of the Municipal Transportation Authority to come out ... More >>

'Signs' Point to Better Times Ahead for Cyclists

The tide is turning...​ For San Francisco's ever-growing cadre of bicyclists, this week opened with both good news and bad.On Monday, San Francisco Superior Court Judge Peter Busch postponed until Nov. 12 his decision on whether to allow the city to install bicycle improvements. San Francisco has ... More >>

U.S. Sues San Francisco Over 2005 Muni Fuel Spill

Jim Herd​UPDATE: City, DOJ, EPA Agree on $250K settlement, see details here.U.S. Department of Justice attorneys filed suit against San Francisco in connection with a 2005 bus yard fuel spill that released as much as 54,000 gallons of diesel gasoline into San Francisco soil and sewers -- with some ... More >>

Fare Cheats Beware: Muni Crackdown Continues

Four friendly fare inspectors​Today at the intersection of 4th and King Streets, passengers aboard the N train with no ticket to ride were about to get caught. As the doomed passengers recognized this, some attempted to look innocent and formulate explanations. ... More >>

Muni Union Head: Early Switch to Manual Power In Train Tunnel, Fingered for Weekend Crash, an 'Understood Practice' Among Drivers, Management

Jim HerdA pair of culprits have emerged as the potential causes for the weekend's nasty Muni crash at West Portal station: Sources within Muni have told the media that the veteran driver reported he blacked out -- which wouldn't have been a problem if the driver didn't shift his train from automatic ... More >>

Bicyclists Pack City Hall -- No Spandex in Sight

Anna McCarthyValet?Bike parking was scarce at a City Hall hearing this morning as bike advocates arrived downtown in droves donning helmets and fluorescent pink identification stickers reading, "Double the number of bike lanes." Although helmets, U-locks, and other bicycling accessories abounded, ma ... More >>

Supervisor Ross Mirkarimi gets the boot for parking in his own spot at City Hall

SF Gov InAction: These Are Not the Budget Numbers You're Looking For

The excitement stops here. I know ... I know ... that today's the day Gubernatorial Candidate Gavin Newsom releases his budget for San Francisco (a California city he occasionally resides in for campaign purposes). And I know that, when he does, we're all going to die a little. I know. But ... More >>

Ticket Master: Parking Officers 'Boot' Supervisor Ross Mirkarimi's Car

Reconsidering your vote on the MTA budget, Mr. Mirkarimi?The truly insidious Us Magazine has a nifty little photo feature titled "Just like us!" featuring famous people caught in the act of jogging, ordering at Del Taco, buying handbags at Prada -- just like us! We're not sure if San Francisco Super ... More >>

S.F. Inquiry Regarding Disability Placards May Miss the (Disabled) Elephant In the Room: It's Just Too Damn Easy To Get a Disability Placard

Who wants some?Supervisor Eric Mar was on the side of the angels yesterday when he convened a hearing looking into the Municipal Transportation Authority's enforcement of potential disability placard fraud; if Mar can help bring the legal hammer down on able-bodied folks who fraudulently represent t ... More >>

MTA Budget Showdown Leads To ... Wait For It ... A COMPROMISE!

Jim HerdThat sound you heard earlier today was every City Hall journalist in San Francisco slapping his palm on the table when the Board of Supervisors vote over the controversial Muni budget was continued. And continued again. And more time went by. And now ... after several hours of behind-the-sce ... More >>

S.F. Ticketing Program Could Open Costly Pandora's Box For City

Joe EskenaziFormer SPOT director Pat Tobin lectures a mover during a hearing. Contractors claim such hearings denied them their right to due process -- and members of the Police Commission worry this could be true.Wednesday night's hearing regarding a controversial police ticketing program was not n ... More >>

Someone's Getting Thrown Under the Bus on MTA Budget Battle. Who Will It Be?

Perhaps this graffiti artist was displeased with Muni's budget as well...When Supervisor David Chiu last month placed an item in the Budget and Finance committee's Wednesday agenda rejecting the Municipal Transportation Authority's controversial budget, he wasn't doing it to merely test out the butt ... More >>

Ain't That the Mayor's SUV Blocking Two Handicapped Access Ramps and Crosswalks?

One ticket for blocking a handicapped curb ramp? $250. Two tickets? $500. Being mayor and dumping your SUV wherever you like? PricelessYesterday we wrote about how Mayor Gavin Newsom's taxpayer-funded Chevy Tahoe Hybrid gets awful mileage, is only marginally more efficient than a regular Tahoe, and ... More >>

SF's New Top Cop Won't Have Contract Protection

By John Geluardi The San Francisco Police Commission will begin the New Year by kicking off a national search for new police chief who, unfortunately, will be denied a critical tool to make improvements on one of the most dysfunctional departments in the country. Chief Heather Fong, who will step ... More >>

Controversial police ticketing program gets makeover

Subwaylaid

Why the new mayor should spend his political honeymoon taking the doggle out of a boondoggle known as the Central Subway

Death, Maiming, Money, and Muni

The enormous costs -- human and financial -- of bad drivers and lax discipline at the San Francisco Municipal Railway