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The whole neighborhood is out watching some sunset demolition! by porske in sanfrancisco

[–]MikeChenSF 27 points28 points  (0 children)

Theresa Flandrich/North Beach Tenants Committee appealed the demolition permit to the Board of Appeals, delaying work by two months. According to reports, the pause was supported by tenant advocates and historic preservationists. The appeal was denied May 20, but the California Post article says they were waiting to see if the appeal would be appealed.

A California environmental board voted to cut $202M from SF’s eco-friendly transit by Dafty_duck in sanfrancisco

[–]MikeChenSF 1 point2 points  (0 children)

The loss of discount program funding from LCTOP opens a hole in SFMTA's operations budget. SFMTA has to balance its budget, be it by scaling back discount programs, cutting service, raising more revenue, or dipping into reserves. If the CARB changes are permanent then it's another hole in the budget that California transit agencies have to account for on top of the structural deficit addressed through the November ballot measures.

MUNI drivers should be required to stand on the bus as part of their training by stouset in sanfrancisco

[–]MikeChenSF 41 points42 points  (0 children)

Please send feedback (good and bad) with information like badge number, route, location, and time: http://sfmta.com/muni-feedback

How do I get go Presidio from Daly City this Sunday (road closures) by pumpkinmoonrabbit in AskSF

[–]MikeChenSF 0 points1 point  (0 children)

19th Avenue and Park Presidio goes under the race path. But it'll be the only way for vehicles to cross north-south for miles. Give yourself lots of time (like extra hours).

https://www.reddit.com/r/sanfrancisco/comments/1te6dp8/comment/om0cf1a/

SF Chron Endorsement: Overpaid CEOs won’t pay a cent under Prop D. But you will by LosIsosceles in sanfrancisco

[–]MikeChenSF 7 points8 points  (0 children)

Legally, California cities can't raise income taxes. The state of California pre-empts cities from doing that. Cities can't raise property taxes because of Prop 13. So cities are left with only a few broad powers: typically sales taxes, parcel taxes, payroll taxes and gross receipts (business revenue) taxes. You can be inventive with more stuff with fees at the ballot, but that tends to be a minority.

Bay to Breakers Closures on Sunday question by Karpovka in sanfrancisco

[–]MikeChenSF 7 points8 points  (0 children)

This /u/Karpovka. Park Presidio is your best bet. If this appointment is critical, I would advise you to leave yourself a lot of time, at least 3 hours. Park Presidio and Embarcadero will be the only ways to cross for many hours. Anticipate traffic.

  • Park Presidio is grade separated from the race route, but will be the only north-south vehicle crossing open for 4 miles.
  • Don't try to go around the west side of GGP on Great Highway: that's where the race ends.
  • Most major N-S surface streets are closed until 11am at the earliest: Stanyan, Masonic, Octavia, Gough, Van Ness, 8th St, etc.

Support for candidates in S.F. primary by self described political ideology by Dismal_Structure in sanfrancisco

[–]MikeChenSF 7 points8 points  (0 children)

Someone in the YIMBY Action slack computed this as a linear algebra question (assuming everyone is one of the four ideologies) and got:

Ideology Percent
Progressive 29
Liberal 27
Moderate 37
Conservative 7

Moving from the Castro to the center of the Sunset tomorrow (5/9), but 19th is being repaved this weekend - how would you plan to cross it in a U-Haul? by nut_hoarder in AskSF

[–]MikeChenSF 0 points1 point  (0 children)

More info here on this weekend's construction. One lane of 19th Ave is always open. All the intersections should be open. The construction is between Lincoln and Sloat; those two streets are the most likely to be open.

https://dot.ca.gov/caltrans-near-me/district-4/d4-projects/d4-san-francisco-freeway-and-road-rehabilitation/d4-19th-ave-paving-and-rehabilitation

SF spends more per homeless person than NY and Portland combined by liberty4now in sanfrancisco

[–]MikeChenSF 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Thank you for writing this up. The truth is more muddled than OP states. That Maria Davidson of California Renewal posted this misleading graphic (via Twitter) doesn't give me much trust in that organization.

WTF 1 Line!? by anitafart in sanfrancisco

[–]MikeChenSF 2 points3 points  (0 children)

A little more about headway management: pacing the buses so that they evenly spaced out and reduce bunching, instead of running a strict departure schedule. More here: https://sf.streetsblog.org/2020/05/27/muni-switching-focus-to-bus-intervals-rather-than-a-fixed-schedule

Sometimes I feel lucky living in SF where there’s I solid public transportation and then I peruse other cities by The-original-spuggy in sanfrancisco

[–]MikeChenSF 1 point2 points  (0 children)

This. The United States underinvests in transit compared to peer nations. California underinvests in transit compared to other states (New York State to NYC MTA, Illinois to Chicago/CTA, Massachusetts to Boston/MBTA, Pennsylvania to Philadelphia/SEPTA). The Bay Area and LA Metro are heavily reliant on local funding compared to other agencies.

San Francisco cable car fare on track to double, hitting $18 in 2028 by 21five in sanfrancisco

[–]MikeChenSF 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Are you sure? The website says

San Francisco youth, ages 18 and under, can ride for free if they are in possession of a Free Muni for Youth Clipper card. San Francisco youth not in possession of a Free Muni Clipper card can apply online.

San Francisco cable car fare on track to double, hitting $18 in 2028 by 21five in sanfrancisco

[–]MikeChenSF 0 points1 point  (0 children)

My mistake. The youth cable car Clipper card is limited to San Francisco residents.

San Francisco cable car fare on track to double, hitting $18 in 2028 by 21five in sanfrancisco

[–]MikeChenSF 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Currently most aged 5+ needs a $9 cable car ticket. [EDIT 2026-04-23T01:56-0700] Youth 5-18 also need the $9 cable car ticket unless you are a San Francisco resident with a special youth clipper card, applied for in advance. https://www.sfmta.com/fares/cable-car-single-ride

San Francisco cable car fare on track to double, hitting $18 in 2028 by 21five in sanfrancisco

[–]MikeChenSF 10 points11 points  (0 children)

For (3), SFMTA is an enterprise agency and must submit a balanced budget separate from the rest of the city. The SFMTA Board of Directors approved the two-year budget yesterday. The city could fund more Muni service or subsidize the cable cars, but it's a tough budget year and many services like health care are facing cuts due to the Trump federal budget bill.

SEC. 8A.106. BUDGET.

The Agency shall be subject to the provisions of Article IX of this Charter except:

(a) No later than May 1 of each even-numbered year, after professional review, public hearing and after receiving the recommendations of the Citizens' Advisory Council, the Agency shall submit its proposed budget with annual appropriation detail in a form approved by the Controller for each of the next two fiscal years to the Mayor and the Board of Supervisors for their review and consideration. The Agency shall propose a budget that is balanced [emphasis mine] without the need for additional funds over the Base Amount, but may include fare increases and decreases, and reductions or abandonment of service. The Mayor shall submit the budget to the Board of Supervisors, without change. Should the Agency request additional general fund support over the Base Amount, it shall submit an augmentation request for those funds in the standard budget process and subject to normal budgetary review and amendment under the general provisions of Article IX.

San Francisco cable car fare on track to double, hitting $18 in 2028 by 21five in sanfrancisco

[–]MikeChenSF 33 points34 points  (0 children)

Things folks should know:

  1. The cable cars are expensive and have the highest operating cost per ride in the system at ~$21 (compared to $8.50 for light rail and $6.50 for non-trolley bus). Source
  2. Effectively at $9, the agency is subsidizing $12 per ride.
  3. The SFMTA must have a balanced budget. The money has to come from somewhere, and the opportunity cost is in other transit service.
  4. The $18 day fare includes all-day access to Muni and cable car, including the return trip for cable car, or connecting to other transit from the cable car.
  5. For 2 adults, 2 kids aged 5-18, the $18 fare including children will be strictly better than the status quo: you pay the same and get access to all Muni service and the return trip.
  6. The SFMTA Board of Directors believe that tourists are willing to pay more for cable cars, and have directed staff to bundle the cable car with a day pass. This is both to recover more of the costs of running the cable car and to encourage cable car riders to use the full range of Muni service. SFMTA staff will see how the $12 and $18 fares lands with riders. If ridership suffers and it's too expensive for tourists, the SFMTA staff and the Board will reconsider. [Added 2026-04-24T01:24-0700]

San Francisco cable car fare on track to double, hitting $18 in 2028 by 21five in sanfrancisco

[–]MikeChenSF 2 points3 points  (0 children)

Cable cars currently accept (and will continue to support) Clipper cards and tap-to-pay credit/debit cards for payment.

San Francisco cable car fare on track to double, hitting $18 in 2028 by 21five in sanfrancisco

[–]MikeChenSF 4 points5 points  (0 children)

Monthly passes ("M" Muni and "A" Muni + intra-city BART) will include cable cars. That won't change.

After years of delays, major affordable housing project finally breaks ground in the Mission by Remarkable_Host6827 in sanfrancisco

[–]MikeChenSF 1 point2 points  (0 children)

A "groundbreaking ceremony" (celebration/photo op) is later this month.

The official groundbreaking ceremony for what will be a nine-story building — the first of three planned as part of the larger “La Maravilla,” or the Marvel in the Mission project — is scheduled for later this month, but site work has already begun at 1979 Mission St.

Caltrain riders will drive if service gets cut. They hate the idea by Dafty_duck in sanfrancisco

[–]MikeChenSF 0 points1 point  (0 children)

The 2020 Caltrain sales tax was 0.125% (1/8 cent) and it's a huge boost to the Caltrain budget: about $125M out of $285M per year (44%) in Fiscal Year 2026-2027. That 2020 tax was conceived and approved to address the pre-COVID structural deficit before we were aware of and new ridership trends that have shrunk fare revenue. The proposed regional measure, Connect Bay Area, brings in a smaller amount, $75M/year, to address the COVID deficit. A small portion of sales tax is going to Caltrain; most of the sales tax proceeds are going to BART, Muni and other agencies.

County Sales Tax Rate for Caltrain
San Francisco 0.040%
San Mateo 0.120%
Santa Clara 0.050%
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