SFist: Muni to San Francisco: Enjoy your Pneumonia!

January 4, 2008

Muni to San Francisco: Enjoy your Pneumonia!

It's a freaking typhoon out there, and Muni wants you to wait 30 minutes for a bus. And then when it comes, it comes in threes! Just like celebrity deaths!

Another jorb well done, Muni.

By mattymatt | Link | Comments (19) | Recommend this! (3) |

Tags: cold, customer service, delay, muni, Muni, rain, storm, wait, wind

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Comments (19)

[1] | 01/04/08 10:09AM

That's just how it is with bad transit systems...weather like this tends to exploit their weaknesses even more.

At least BART is running close to schedule, or so NBC11 claims.

[2] | 01/04/08 10:10AM

call in sick dude!

i guess this explains why a few folks still tried biking along the embarcadero today

one of them got blown over onto the sidewalk

i just about did a spit take with my coffee

hilarious!

[3] | 01/04/08 10:10AM

Another jorb well done, Muni.

With MUNI, nothing can go wrogn!

[4] | 01/04/08 10:13AM

this happened this morning waiting for a 21 and a 30/45/9x. more so at market, where people where literally being blown into the street b/c the winds were so strong and no one wanted to wait 20 minutes for a bus going south.

[5] | 01/04/08 10:17AM

This is not Muni's fault. Trees are down along Fulton, and at 8th and Fulton a cyclist was hit by a car and a traffic jam has ensued. The reports are coming over the scanner faster than one can keep track.

Muni's responsible for a lot of delays, but don't blame the weather on them!

[6] | 01/04/08 10:24AM

And then when it comes, it comes in threes! Just like celebrity deaths!

MUNI certainly knows a thing or two about death.

Muni's responsible for a lot of delays, but don't blame the weather on them!

PG&E was out trimming trees. Where was the MTA?

If there are blockages on Fulton, perhaps increased service on the 31 would make sense? Or diesel buses on the 5? Or something? People still need to go to work.

[7] | 01/04/08 10:27AM

lol zippy. you make that comment like someone at muni has the capability to manage anything anywhere close to realtime or like a real business.

[8] | 01/04/08 10:34AM

Power was out along the overhead lines on Haight St. this morning, so I just called in sick. I wish Newsom would put more funding toward Muni so they could build a weather dome over the city so we don't have to worry about this drizzle and wind.

[9] | 01/04/08 10:34AM

At least BART is running close to schedule, or so NBC11 claims.

BART was running behind schedule with smaller trains. It was kinda sucky. But, still better than MUNI from the sound of it.

Oh, well- at least it's Friday!

[10] | 01/04/08 10:41AM

I hate MUNIs incompetence as much as the next city resident, but, yeah, this crazy-ass storm and the havoc it's causing aren't MUNIs fault.

Californians, when faced with inclement weather, simply act like it's not happening (and I'm guilty of this too). Gale force winds and heavy rain don't stop people from driving 80 on the freeway, or accelerating towards stop signs, or expecting public transit to remain on time.

This morning I saw a dude grab a bunch of downed power? telephone? cable? lines that were draped on the front of his car, trying to get them off so he could get to wherever he was going. God[dess] forbid we'd be late for work or anything.

[11] | 01/04/08 10:44AM

Bart was delayed by about 20 minutes this morning due to an 'obstruction on the tracks.' But we get awnings. Neener neener.

[12] | 01/04/08 10:59AM

I walked to work .... soaked like a sponge by the time I arrived (~12 minutes). Oy.

[13] | 01/04/08 11:41AM

I'm amazed Muni is running at all. Not a big fan of Muni, but I'd cut them some slack...

People still need to go to work.

That includes Muni employees and many others who have an effect on the state of public transit today.

[14] | 01/04/08 11:46AM

Here's the latest list of MUNI problems. There are many routed blocked by trees, flooding or power outages.

511 list

[15] | 01/04/08 11:48AM

I do cut MUNI slack during this storm. People seem to act as if only MUNI could possibly have storm problems. The NY subway basically shutdown during a storm last summer.

NY Times

I'd much rather rely on the NY subway than MUNI, but neither is perfect.

[16] | 01/04/08 12:13PM

I cannot believe the length of that 511 list of blocked Muni lines. And that's not even including the ones affected by Muni operators who can't reach their buses.

As of noon:

---------

The intersection of Market & 3rd is closed. Market Street electric lines west of 8th are additionally affected by a power outage.
Related Routes: F, 5, 6, 7, 9AX, 9BX, 9X, 9, 21, 30, 31, 38L, 38, 45, 71L, 71

L Taraval disrupted at 22nd Avenue, 25th Avenue.

No M service between SFSU and Balboa Park.

24 blocked at Bayshore & Industrial.

36, 44, 43 blocked at Lawton & 7th.

30, 49 blocked at Van Ness & Chestnut.

6, 7 blocked at Haight & Divisadero. 71 and 71L may also be affected.

14 ad 49 blocked at Mission & 21st.

33 blocked at Stanyan & Oak.

5, 33 blocked at Arguello & McAllister.

6, 33 blocked at Ashbury & Frederick.

T stopped at 3rd & Palou.

24 blocked at Divisadero & Washington.

44 blocked; O'Shaughnessy Street closed.

-------------

That's about half the lines in the city. The rest will be crushed and delayed by overcrowding as riders switch to lines that are still operating.

The Muni control center should be commended for not giving up and going home.

[17] | 01/04/08 03:51PM

the T is stopped? whoa.

[18] | 01/05/08 10:43PM

Muni doesn't need a storm for 30 minute bus waits. Any old day will do, as anyone who rides the 28, 29, or 48 in the Sunset knows.

[19] | 01/05/08 11:45PM

I do cut MUNI slack during this storm. People seem to act as if only MUNI could possibly have storm problems.

Of course MUNI will have problems in severe weather. But they can and should do better. For the most part the streets weren't flooded to the degree that the subways were in NY.

- The F line cars are single ended, taking TWO people to turn around.

- As the trolleybuses stacked up, there were lots of drivers with nothing to do (gee, if they were certified on diesel buses maybe just maybe they could drive replacement buses! -- buses were running down Mission street, just not the 14).

- For all of the administrative types out there, nobody was alerting folks on Market St. that lots of buses had been rerouted to Mission or beyond. Lots of confused passengers. Maybe someone could have stuck signs at the shelters, or wandered down Market St. directing people appropriately... or gee whiz, couldn't they use the NextBus signs at the shelters to alert people? What a novel thought.

- At some point last night they were running J-Church buses and trains along the same route. Yep. That's an efficient use of resources.

- The metro announcer did mention that the J was not running because of a power outage, but every other word was indecipherable. Maybe they could have used any number of overhead signs or stuck posters in the booths indicating what train service was out.

Shit happens. Duh. Things could be handled much better, that's the point. Even PG&E who has chucked preventative maintenance in favour of profits had people out before the storm trimming trees and such.

sagitta100: anyone who rides MUNI knows that.