Don't Take Our Bus Away!

Reroute of #33 Ashbury/18th Street Muni Line Raises Issues of Equity, Accessibility

The San Francisco Municipal Transportation Agency has long been crafting a comprehensive overhaul of the Muni system originally called the Transit Effectiveness Project (TEP) and now known as Muni Forward. An ambitious citywide collection of route and bus stop changes, the project, as described on its website [link: http://muniforward.com/], “will help us to better accommodate the needs of families, seniors, and the disabled...” Some riders, however, are questioning that self-assessment, particularly in connection with a line that serves the county hospital.

The #33 Ashbury/18th Street line (renamed from the #33 Stanyan) currently travels from the Richmond District through the Haight, Castro, and Mission and, finally, down Potrero Avenue to San Francisco General Hospital. Of the several other Muni lines serving SFGH, only the #48 Quintara comes from the west, and this line travels east from the Sunset through West Portal and Noe Valley, serving different neighborhoods from the #33 before reaching the Mission.

A proposed Muni Forward reroute shows the #33 continuing east on 16th Street at Potrero and no longer serving SFGH. Riders traveling to the public hospital on the #33 would have to transfer at 16th Street to the #9 San Bruno.

In a confusing tangle of routes all affecting one another, this plan has the #33 replacing the easternmost segment of the current #22 Fillmore when that bus is able to travel straight on 16th Street to the recently opened hospital at Mission Bay, currently served by the new #55 16th Street line running from the 16th Street BART station. The #55 is considered temporary. The #22 reroute requires new overhead wires at the convergence of the Caltrain tracks and 280 freeway overpass at Mississippi/7th Street, a process that could take years, and the #55 is filling in that gap in the meantime.

Patients and staff at SFGH, neighbors, and advocates for senior and disabled Muni riders have all voiced objections to the plan to reroute the #33 away from Potrero and the public hospital. They consider the necessity to transfer onto the #9 at 16th and Potrero a hardship for riders traveling to SFGH, often in wheelchairs or using walkers and canes, and ask why the #55 can’t be made permanent and used to service the streets lost to the #22 when it is eventually rerouted to Mission Bay: Connecticut and 18th Streets to Third Street and the Dogpatch area.

So far, the SFMTA has resisted this suggestion, but officials have agreed to conduct a survey of riders. Opponents of the change are supportive of this step but skeptical that the results will reflect the reality faced by the most vulnerable users forced to get off one bus and onto another—often crowded—line. Muni Forward has promised increased service on the #9 and #9R, which is most welcome, but 16th Street comes in the middle of the #9’s run, and the line will likely remain crowded. Increased service could, in fact, make the #9 more attractive to potential riders, keeping it crammed even with more frequent buses.

Fighting your way onto a crowded bus on crutches or in medical distress on your way to the public hospital is an obstacle to obtaining care that should never be acceptable as part of transportation service. Muni Forward was required by Title VI of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 to conduct an analysis of the impact of proposed changes on low-income communities and communities of color for every line in the system [link: http://www.sfmta.com/sites/default/files/agendaitems/3-28-14%20Item%207%20TEP%20Title%20VI%20Analysis.pdf]. Ridership on the #33 did not exceed citywide percentages of these populations, so the proposed reroute is not considered as having a disproportionate effect under the law. Unfortunately, Title VI does not consider people with disabilities or seniors as populations that must be given special consideration, even as we celebrate the 25th anniversary of the Americans with Disabilities Act. In addition, the Title VI analysis of the #33 is for the entire route, which includes some wealthy areas, and not broken down for the portion that serves San Francisco General Hospital.

Opponents of the proposed #33 reroute understand that a citywide overhaul requires compromise and will never satisfy everyone. But the needs of riders with the fewest choices and the most difficulty should be the first consideration. Paratransit is often touted as an alternative for Muni riders with disabilities, but it requires 24-hour notice, takes over two months for registration, is more expensive and less reliable than Muni, and is in no way a substitute for accessible service through the public transit system.

When conflicts pit constituencies or notions of efficiency against one another, the decision-making factor should always be care for those who need it most. Regardless of the results of the survey, efforts will continue through community organizing, outreach to SFMTA Board members, and publicity in the press to encourage the SFMTA to reconsider this proposed reroute of the #33.

For more information:

Alice Bierman, Peer Advocate Program Coordinator, Senior & Disability Action
(415) 546-1333
alice [at] sdaction.org

Pi Ra, SDA University Director, Senior & Disability Action
(415) 546-2096
srira [at] sdaction.org

Iris Biblowitz, RN
(415) 285-4536
irisbiblowitz [at] hotmail.com

Fran Taylor
(415) 285-4536
duck.taylor [at] yahoo.com

Representing Muni Forward:
Julie Kirschbaum, Operations Planning & Scheduling Manager, SFMTA
julie.kirschbaum [at] sfmta.com
(415) 701.4304