Photo by @thecara
The fine folks at Market Street Railway have more on the two-time special Sunday service. Meanwhile, click the photo below to open a gallery of images we dug up.
Photo by itsgraaaay
Photo credits:
1. itsblim
2. itsgraaaay
3. agentakit
4. @larrybobsf
5. agentakit
6. @thecara
7. @markasaurus
8. @thecara
9. cripsahoy
10. @thecara
11. @thecara
12. @thecara
13. abobass
Photo by skew-t
Last week, we posted about a circa-1960s Muni bus up for auction, yours for the bargain-basement price of $12,000. You have a little less than a day to bid on that one. But, you ask, what will I do with my vintage Muni bus, other than have fabulous parties in it?
Tofu St. John on our Facebook Page had a popular suggestion:
I think a few should be restored and put into regular service for the retro appeal. Bring back the 7-Haight and only use old, restored buses.
Now there’s an idea.
We had some sad-face after our favorite elusive (read: not ridden that often, but nice when we did) lines got the axe in 2009. After soliciting Muni obituaries for them, we found a number of you felt the same way. A historic version of the 26-Valencia or the 4-Sutter at least makes for some fun afternoon daydreaming, however unlikely it seems in real life.
Photo by Flickr user napolifd
Violence on Muni has once again been on our minds lately, seeing this week’s stabbing on the J. As much as we wish these weren’t the stories to remember Muni by, some of the things that happen on Muni are regrettable. Muni rider Gordo sent in this obit for the 7:
I once got punched in my shoulder riding the good ol’ no. 7. It didn’t matter to the random assaulter that I was wearing a sling on that arm after breaking my shoulder two weeks prior. the guy just laughed and then jumped off at the next stop. oh no. 7 I’ll miss you and your unprovoked acts of violence.
And Muni rider Rob Nagle had this to say about the 7:
Today, among other lines, the 7-Haight will no longer be with us. In an effort to save money, the San Francisco Municipal Transportation Agency will discontinue the 7-Haight along with seven other lines.
As for the 7-Haight, it’s a good bet no one will notice. I can’t remember the last time I’d even seen a 7-Haight let alone ride one. I live on Haight Street and usually get a 6-Parnassus or 71-Haight-Noriega whenever I need to catch a bus. Even if I’m not riding the bus, the 6 and the 71 are all I usually see when I’m out and about on my block. That is until Sept. 25 when I saw two heading downtown within an hour of each other while I was doing laundry on a Friday night (I know, laundry on a Friday night? = lame). “There goes my angle for the obit,” I thought to myself, regretting the fact I had put it off.
But the truth is the 7-Haight was a rare sight. I’ve definitely ridden one from time to time, but it’s been at least three years since I did. I thought it had already been discontinued. I work at a newspaper that covers Muni all the time and remembered something about service changes to the 7 a while back. As it turns out, it was just a service reduction that I remembered. In September 2005, service on the 7-Haight and two other lines were curtailed, one of which – the 4-Sutter – is also dying.
A search on the rarely spotted 7 reveals two reviews on Yelp, one good and one bad, but one helps explain perhaps why I’ve so rarely seen the 7. “I used to hate the 7-Haight – but now I love the 7-Haight. It only runs at rush hour, they use the big double buses, it’s normally nearly empty in both directions, so there are many seats to choose from, and it’s faster than the 6 Parnassus,” opines one Yelper. If it’s true the 7 only ran during rush hour that would explain why I never saw it. Of course, the night I saw two was after rush hour but this is Muni we’re talking about, so making sense is not necessary.
The other reviewer’s sentiments probably help speak to reasons the 7 is no longer with us when he writes “The 7-Haight is a horrible bus line. It probably used to be really important and iconic and old school, but since Muni added the 6-Parnassus, 71-Haight/Noriega and 71L Haight-Noriega Limited, the 7 serves absolutely no purpose.”
So, farewell 7-Haight, according to Yelp, half of the time you were awesome and half of the time you totally sucked, but a .500 record isn’t a terrible thing. Those that actually rode you may miss you, but me, I feel I barely knew you.
Be sure to read California Beat’s obituary for the 7-Haight.
All this week we are running eulogies written by you, dear riders, to honor the Muni lines that are being eliminated this Saturday. Come back tomorrow for more stories in memory of these lines.
Photo by Flickr user Mat Honan
It’s summer. It’s hot. Muni Mind Reader took the week off last week. But never you fear — she’s back and in fine form this warm August Friday. For this installment, Tiffany (aka, Muni Mind Reader) checks in with that colorful character you sometimes see on the 6, 7, or 71. Any of the Haight Street lines, really. He or she is known by many names and aromas, but enough of this intro. Take it away, Mind Reader!
Hey, what are you all looking at? You’re all just a bunch of society-lovers, aren’t you? Oh I’ve seen this before. You look at my duct-taped pants, weather-beaten trench, and standard-issued Doc Martens, and think, “If only he’d shop at The Gap or Banana Republic, he’d be such a nice boy!”
Well, listen up SOCIETY, I refuse to conform to your capitalistic, material-obsessed, world. Lucky for you, I’m not going to try to sit next to any of y’all. Instead, I’ll just sit up front where I can spread out a little bit, have more space for this radio, trash bag filled with other trash bags, sleeping bag, tarp, and duffel bag. The last three items I just picked up from the army surplus store on Haight Street. Incidentally, it’s where I do all my shopping. These pants are really just second-hand army ACU pants. I added the duct tape myself to enhance durability, cred, and had absolutely nothing to do one Wednesday afternoon. If you’re going to be a middle-class, early-20s, homeless-by-choice punk in this city, freakin’ army surplus stores are the bomb.
This is my dog, Warrior. Come here War! We’ve been together a long time. I got her at the SPCA. Now, anyone who has tried to adopt a pet from an animal shelter can sympathize with me over the long-ass process. Originally, I lied and said I had a job, thinking the key to having a pet in this city is to prove you have daily responsibilities and income to provide for the health and well-being of my furry friend. But then they worried I’d be out of the house all the time. So then I fessed up. Hell no man, I don’t live in your conformist world. My job is to let passers-by know they are the enemy and my decision to live under a few bushes in Golden Gate Park is a passionate statement on what’s wrong with the world. That’s when everyone realized I’d be “home” all the time. She’s been really instrumental in helping me carry around all my belongings. That’s why she always gets free passage on Muni. Cuz she’s a SERVICE DOG! Haaa! Stupid society.
Nah, he ain’t got no muzzle. What the hell do you want me to do? Conform some of the time?
So I know you’re wondering why it is I don’t smell quite as bad as I usually do. Usually you can smell the potent blend of my urine, my dog’s urine, weed, BO, and compost before I even get on the bus. I saw you all look up horrified when you heard all the plastic I was carrying rustle. But then you thought, Well that’s weird, I don’t want to throw up in my mouth. FOOLED YOU! I had my monthly visit with the folks. STUPID PARENTS. Nah, I’m just kidding. I love ‘em, and even though it can be pretty embarrassing to be picked up by your parents in the Panhandle (especially when they show up in their vintage Mercedes-Benz) I think they’re proud of me. Yeah, we headed up to Sonoma for the weekend. I got to take a shower, wash my clothes. I gave Warrior a bath too. It’s real pretty up in Sonoma, have you ever been? YEAH YOU HAVE BECAUSE YOU ARE PART OF THE PROBLEM MY FRIEND!
All right, I’m ready to blow this joint. I promised my parents I’d at least fill out one college application today, though really, I’m just doing a 40 run for the kids at camp. Smell me later!
Found this amazingly neato photo set on Flickr the other day. It was shot and assembled by Octoferret, to whom we owe a humble thank you. In light of upcoming Muni lines slated for extinction, we feel this is a moving tribute to the routes that time has forgotten.
This arrived in the ol’ email bag this evening from Devin:
I’m not clear exactly what happened, but I was on the second of two outbound J trains when something went on aboard the first. Our driver tried to explain in his very limited English that we were “blocked” and there were “police.” SFPD was all over the first train, now largely free of passengers, and it had what looked (from a distance) like a bullet hole in one window. Didn’t have time to stay around to find out any more, but it fouled the J line for a while, and held up a 22 and a 7 in the traffic.
You, too, can be a citizen intrepid Muni reporter. Send us your stories and photos, newsworthy or not.