We've seen a renewed interest in tidiness (not their own) from Muni drivers, and we couldn't be more thrilled. For example, this Tuesday we recieved a lecture from our N Judah driver on the neatness of the tear we made as we removed a pass from our booklet. The irony of getting harassed for an uneven perforation by a person driving a train that smelled strongly of urine and hard liquor would have made our head explode, were we not more concerned about the mess we'd make. We're sure that this attention to detail is the harbinger of a new era of Muni cleanliness.
Hey, but at least we're getting a ride! Poor SFist Reader Marc, however, does not. We agree with him that it's the cruelest of frustrations to be passed by an out of service bus, especially during rush hour.
Here's a photo of the bus that rode by on 3rd & Market at 5:30 PM on a Thursday while 30 of us waited at the bus stop....It's off my phone, but I think you can clearly read the 'Sorry No Passengers' in the digital display.... WTF does that mean? Why is it driving down a bus route, then?
How's Muni treating you these days? Drop us a line and let us know!
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Marc, Your phone's camera sure takes damn fine pictures! I wonder what kind of phone you gots.
People-wise, I've definitely noticed an increase at drivers yelling at riders over the PA (on the N Judah at least). "Get on, we could have been gone by now," that sort of thing.
Equipment-wise, I'm experiencing a service interruption/breakdown about once a week. The kind where you have to choose between waiting 45 mintues or walking the rest of the distance.
Yesterday my mind was boggled by the sight of four N trains stacked up in a row at 9th and Irving. After the first one loaded about 10 people it shut the doors and left the other 15 of us waiting. The next two trains rolled by without opening their doors, and the last one let us on. This morning, coming from Embarcadero, the trains were hosed enough that incoming trains were arriving on both tracks and then departing along the tracks from whence they came. It's always a good time on the N!
On a fairly regular basis, an out of service 36 inbound goes by the Forest Hill Muni Metro station during evening rush hour. Usually there are people who've been waiting quite some time because the bus they expected to take didn't show, and the collective disappointment and frustration would be amusing were I not a part of it. It's particularly cruel because the 36 only runs every half hour after 6 so it's entirely likely the event occurs in conjuction with the prior bus having been way early or the next bus way late or a no-show because all result in a longer than 30 minute wait for the next bus.
This also happens on the 44 inbound going down O'Shaughnessy in the mornings. The bus comes on some schedule not found in any published form as it is, but when a not in service flies by, it's rather annoying because anyone getting on the bus is going to Glen Park BART and the out of service bus pretty much has to drive right by the station - why not take passengers that far at least?
MUNI sucks. The buses are urine-filled. They come late or not at all. They're overcrowded.
Most of the problems seem to me to be lack of resources - money for the entire program.
Too bad poor people don't vote. If they did, the MUNI wouldn't suck so bad.
Scott: It's a Nokia 3220 - I got $25 off my registration to take it off their hands...
Eve: My problem isn't that it's 'out of service' - its just 'no passengers,' which infuriated me more...