Muni to Cease Surprise ‘Short Turns’ on Metro Trains

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Muni Bus to Nowhere in Particular
Photo by Joe Gratz

SF Weekly reports the dubious news:

Muni will end its practice of surprising riders by curtailing service mid-route, according to a new report delivered to the Board of Supervisors. The practice, known in the industry as “short-turn,” occurs in response to situations where light-rail trains bunch up because some are behind schedule. In order to avoid a bottleneck in the Muni Metro Tunnel running underneath Market Street, managers and inspectors will sometimes turn a rail car around mid-route, leaving surprised passengers high and dry to wait for the next train.

When I read the article, I kept hoping this new “policy” would apply system-wide. Alas, no. Not the case. In my experience, the 49-Van Ness looooves to make unannounced stops at Market, or sometimes 14th Street. That practice will remain, it seems. So hang onto your Magic 8 Ball for those bus rides, folks!

Read the rest of SF Weekly’s article.

Category: News

Bus stop graffiti diary: ‘Those Funky Lords’

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Muni rider Charles on the image above, which he captured:

I think it was a Bebe ad, but I can’t find an image of the original. What I find interesting is not so much the artwork but the fact that the poster was removed, modified, and returned to the shelter. (It’s also possible it was taken from elsewhere and then installed here. I didn’t notice it until after it had been painted on.) It’s on the north side of the shelter (i.e., not visible to traffic on that side of the street) and is less obviously graffiti than the tags often applied to the empty building next to the shelter, which may help to explain why the poster has not been replaced. Street artist Kaws did similar — and, in my opinion, much more interesting — work beginning in the 1990s.

The shelter is at Van Ness at Clay.

Seen interesting things on or around Muni? ‘Tis always the season to share on Muni Diaries!

Category: diaries, Photos

Get Ready for a Cheap Weekend: $2 All-Day Rides, Half Off at Andalu

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cocktails
Photo by yenwenyi

It’s not too early to plan your weekend if you want to save a few bucks. This Sunday, you can take advantage of Muni’s Sunday FunDay offer: $2 gets you an all-day pass every Sunday in December.

Which makes it that much easier for you to hop on the J-Church, 14, 22, 33, or 49 to get yourself to Andalu for the Coca-Cola braised short ribs with white bean salad or crispy mac and cheese. Our new deal partner Scoutmob has a 50% off deal available to claim today. Use it for some of Andalu’s Mission-themed cocktails, like the Valencia and the Guerrerro (brandy, scotch, sweet vermouth, and bitters).

You have all today (only!) to get the Andalu deal at Scoutmob — just text it to yourself, and the deal is good for the next three months (saving you up to $30 bucks). Or you can download Scoutmob’s mobile app and get the deal directly on your phone.

Category: News Tags:

Muni Frequent Rider Miles?

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Geary Blvd
Photo by Michael Risenhoover

I read a tweet the other day by @funderbug:

“Too bad they don’t offer bus miles, you know, like airline miles…”

Too bad, yeah. But it got me thinking: What if SFMTA had some sort of rewards program for loyal riders? All default jokes about “loyalty” aside, I think this is an amusing mental exercise.

My most frequently used route is the 49-Van Ness, which I ride 3.3 miles from the Mission to the end of the line, at North Point and Van Ness. From there, I hop on a 47-Van Ness for 0.75 miles to get to work. 4.15 miles to get there. And I repeat that ride in the afternoons to get home: 8.3 miles per day

Multiplied by five, I rack up 41.5 miles on Muni per week. Multiply that by 50 weeks per year, and we’re looking at a whoppin’ 2,075 miles per year!!! Holy crap!

Sooooo, what should my prize options be? Yeah, a bus that runs on time and all that. But what else?

How many miles have you piled up over the years on Muni?

Category: diaries, reflection

Caption This Muni Cartoon

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What’s happening in this Muni cartoon?

Michael Capozzola, who draws “Surveillance Caricatures” in the San Francisco Chronicle’s 96 Hours section, contributed two cartoons for gallery-goers to caption at the I Live Here: SF exhibit at SOMArts last month. Lots of you joined in on the fun and posted your own caption. Like this one, from someone who called himself “BOSS”:

“WAIT!!! My wife will kill me if I forget the baby on the bus again!!!”

Or, from an anonymous gallery goer:

“Hey wait! The next bus isn’t coming for 78 minutes!”

If you missed the chance to caption this carton in person last month, here’s your chance. Caption this Muni cartoon in the comments section: what’s happening on the 24-Divisadero here?

Category: diaries, Funny: Muni LOLs Tags:
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