One Big Pride Party on Muni 06.29.10
Photo by Flickr user SFBart
My Sunday afternoon started with a total Muni fail — waiting for the 47 for half an hour and inching along Van Ness at the speed of walking. But most people seemed to be in a pretty good mood. When I finally got off of the 47 and hopped on the 14L, a girl with a little cross tattooed below her eye ran for the bus and sat next to me, catching her breath. She complimented me on my dress and then started fishing around in her purse. “You want one of these?”
It was this free “Pride Parade Survival Pack” that had little packs of antiacid, Advil, mints, a moist towelette, and sone Band-Aids in it. Totally sweet.
Later in the afternoon, I hopped on a crowded 38-Geary. Two young guys jumped on the bus, one wearing a name tag that said, “Bottom,” and the other guy wearing a button that says…yeah, obviously. I took out my Blackberry to check the time (neurotic habit), and Bottom excitedly says, “Hey, can I scan your barcode? Do you BBM?” I had no idea what he was talking about. “Blackberry Messenger, duh!” The two passengers next to me spent the next five minutes talking about Blackberry Messenger and whether it can scan a barcode tattoo.
If only every day could be this convivial — without the slow-as-molasses traffic.
The New Lazy Boy Recliner, SF Style 06.28.10
Photo by Sherwin Stechico
Sherwin on Flickr spotted this guy whose flexibility and balance I can only aspire to achieve. Sherwin said:
Just a weird but interesting way to use a hydrant. He was actually reading a book. I guess he was comfy. He was there for at least thirty minutes as a couple of my coworkers and I went to get ice cream at Rite Aid across the street
May I suggest that the little seats inside Muni bus stops might be a little more comfortable?
Weekend photos: Keep It Movin’ 06.25.10
Photo by Flickr user andyi
- SFMTA Appoints New Chief Safety Officer (Reginald Mason of the Metropolitan Transit Authority in Houston) (SFMTA)
- Mayor Newsom Slams Muni Union Leaders Again, Decries Work Rules (Streetsblog SF)
- Akit checks in with the latest on Clipper Card, WageWorks (Akit’s Complaint Department)
We’ve got something up our sleeves for you on Monday! Remember the site redesign that we told you about a couple of weeks ago? We polled your opinions and have been working hard at shaping up the new look with our developer. It’s on its way, and we sure hope you like the newer, prettier Muni Diaries.
Until then, enjoy the photos and your weekend. And send us your Pride Weekend Muni photos as they happen!
Photo by Flickr user s__i
Photo by Troy Holden
Photo by Flickr user williambuckley
Photo by Tara Ramroop
Ready for Pride Weekend? 06.25.10
Photo by Flickr user fatniu
•Extra Service: J, Metro Subway.
•Rail line reroutes: F.
•Bus route reroutes: 2, 5, 6, 8X, 9, 10, 12, 14, 14L, 19, 21, 27, 30, 31, 38, 45, 71, 76, K-L-M-N-T owl service.
•Traffic Delays: 12, 47, 49.
•Area Affected: Downtown to Civic Center.
•Time: Early morning until clear.
Extra service will be provided in the Muni Metro subway between the West Portal and Embarcadero stations from 8 a.m. to about 11 p.m. on Sunday. Extra bus service from Church and 30th to the Transbay Terminal will be provided from 8:15 a.m. and from Market and Van Ness to Church and 30th until 6 p.m. on the J Church Line.From 7 a.m. until the end of the celebration, the F Market and Wharves Line will not operate on Market Street between Van Ness Avenue and The Embarcadero. During that time, the historic streetcar service will operate between Fisherman’s Wharf and the Ferry Building at the foot of Market Street, and in the Castro/Upper Market area, on Market Street between Castro Street and Van Ness Ave.
Check out SFMTA’s Pride Weekend page for details about the weekend, including reroutes for Friday and Saturday.
A double dose of cute on Muni 06.24.10
Photo by Flickr user Heather
This picture is a double dose of cute for me: It’s got a cute kid and a cute dog. And, well, it’s on Muni, which is my beat!
NYC Subway More Disgusting than Muni? 06.22.10
“Everyone who has ridden the subway has sat next to a pile of abandoned newspapers, been hit in the foot by an empty bottle, or accidentally walked into the “stinky car” with a homeless person at one end. These are the things that we need to overlook everyday in order to survive riding the most convenient form of public transportation in the Big Apple. But every so often something so horrendously disgusting happens that it shatters our ability to descend into the hot, steaming underground several times a day. A few weeks ago while waiting for a 6 train from Grand Central Station, I saw a pile of puke next to a garbage can. Sadly, that’s not too uncommon, but what made it grosser than gross was there was a rat eating the puke. Ew, ew, ew, ew!
We know you have some nasty stories to share about MTA-related gross outs. You might even be able to top my puke-eating vermin tale. Please, take to the comments section and let us know your worst. The one that turns our stomach the most wins a $10 Metrocard and the admiration of all our readers for surviving the worst underground atrocity. Good luck, and happy riding.”
The stories in the comment section of this Gawker post are pretty gnarly, but hey, New York isn’t the center of the universe! Here in San Francisco, Muni’s got loogies, fish guts, scary unexplained red puddles…
Dubious honor, for sure. I’ve only been on the New York City subway a handful of times and can’t attest to its grossness myself. East Coast transplants, what do you think?
Muni Rollsigns, Revised 06.21.10
Photo by Flickr user octoferret
We came across this amazing photo by Octoferret on Flickr, who stitched together two Muni roll signs to show the lines and destinations. A little more from Octoferret on how he put this together:
There are 150 readings on the destinations sign and 157 on the lines sign. The destinations sign has the date 2/8/90 printed on it, the lines sign is undated. Both signs came from one of these buses, which were retired from service in 2007.
This image is made from 27 photos of the sign showing the lines and 26 photos of the sign showing the destinations after heavy editing. I had to straighten every single photo, up the contrast, make the colors uniform and then stitch them all together.
Wow. That’s patience.
I spotted some unusual lines on the photo — 18-Geary?
‘Contact high’ on Muni? 06.21.10
Photo by Troy Holden
A few weeks ago we asked you how the Muni service cuts were affecting you. Daishin had this completely unexpected outcome from the service cuts:
Yesterday I was forced to take the 49 up Van Ness from Market because I didn’t feel well enough to walk the several blocks to my house. The bus was so crowded no one could move. I was standing next to a lovely beautiful young woman with bracelets up and down her arms and wonderful tats on her bare shoulders.
She kept smiling sweetly at me and tried to make eye contact. After a few minutes it dawned on me that she was totally fucked up on something so I asked her if she was wasted. She smiled even more broadly and said, “YES! I’m just glad to see that there are plenty of young people in San Francisco still getting stoned and riding Muni like we used to do in the 1960s, albeit it’s a hell of a lot more uncomfortable these days.”
Weekend photos: Ready For Close-Up 06.18.10
Photo by Flickr user Brandon Doran
I’ve waited a whole week for this: Jeff is on his man-vacation, so this weekend I hope y’all don’t mind that I change the Muni Diaries background to something frilly that involves cupcakes, unicorns, kittens, and ballons, all in pink.
It’s going to be so awesome.
I know, right?
In real Muni news this week:
- Paul Rose is the new SFMTA spokesperson (SF Chronicle)
- City’s 311 customer service line works, and Muni pays (Bay Citizen)
- Muni to vote on stricter drug-testing guidelines (ABC 7)
- Nat Ford “disappointed and perplexed” By Muni Drivers’ Rejection Of Concessions Intended To Restore Service (SF Appeal)
- Muni service cuts appear to be staying put (SF Examiner)
- Report: SFPD’s New Approach to Crime on Muni “Promising” (Streetsblog)
- Blame, Calls for Revote and Contract Details in Wake of Muni Drivers Vote (Streetsblog)
- Muni Shell Game Perps Still at It; SFPD, SFMTA Slow/No Response (ABC 7, Muni Diaries)
- Police crack down on Muni crime (SF Examiner)
- Push to Organize SF Transit Riders Proving Difficult (SF Weekly)
- Muni boss says operators getting bad info (SF Examiner)
- Clipper Card Transition for Bay Area Transit is Now Official (Streetsblog)
- SFMTA gets a new spokesman (City Insider/SFGate)
Enjoy the photos and your weekend. And keep the stories, sketches, videos, photos, and tweets coming!
Photo by Flickr user KayVeeInc
Photo by Flickr user Vivian Chen
Photo by Flickr user captin_nod
Sketch-A-Passenger 06.18.10
To pass the time on the bus, you might busy yourself with your phone, your iPod, read a book, Tweet us about what you see, or here’s an idea: Rider Joaquin Jutt sketches what’s around him. He sent us the above quick sketch of his fellow passengers on the 22.
I know I’ve seen several artistically-inclined people sketching on the bus. If you use your Muni time doodling away on your sketch pad, won’t you please send us your masterpiece?
