After several months of being out of service, much to the chagrin of countless weary Muni Metro passengers, the escalator at the Church Street Muni Station near the intersection of 14th and Church is back in service, in all its shiny, new glory. We're not sure exactly when the plywood barricades were removed to reveal this new mechanical wonder, but the moving steps still smelled new when lazy in-a-hurry SFist utilized them this afternoon. more ›

As City Insider reports, the Board of Supervisors are reconsidering Muni's decades-old policy regarding strollers on the bus in an effort to keep families from fleeing the city at the alarming rate we keep hearing about. Although, we'd like to point out that the Chron article to which everyone keeps referring and that keeps getting recycled every year says that there are actually 3,000 more children under age 5 in San Francisco than 10 years ago. It's the school-aged children that we've actually been losing (more than 8,000 over the age of five). But maybe we're just niggling. more ›

Or if you want to look at it another way: San Francisco won a Sustainable Transport Award for the SFPark program's dynamic meter pricing and for replacing a citywide swath of parallel parking spaces with parklets. You know, depending on which side of the green fence you're on. The award is given by the Institute for Transportation and Development Policy (which is apparently an organization that conveniently fights emissions, poverty, and pollution all at once), and it recognizes San Francisco as an innovator of sorts in the area of sustainable transport. Also: we got bonus points for "embracing social media". more ›

Two people died in separate incidents on Caltrain tracks on Saturday. The incidents occurred within an hour of each other near the California Ave Caltrain Station in Palo Alto and just North of the Menlo Park station, according to a Caltrain spokesperson. more ›

With BART fares scheduled to go up next July, the transit agency is mulling over a couple new proposals that could help take the sting out of local riders' Clipper Card balances. Among the possible new perks BART board President Bob Franklin detailed to the Examiner: Allowing for free rides after a rider racks up 40 trips in a month, 15% discounts for Clipper Card users and increasing the youth discount age to 17. more ›

SFist came upon an odd scene at Duboce and Church this evening, in which one N Judah was stopped facing downtown with passengers stuck on it, another train was facing Ocean Beach on the same track, and a couple of other trains and a shuttle were sitting willy-nilly. "Another day, another commute," we said to ourselves. more ›

As part of BART's Fleet of the Future project, in which they'll be phasing out their 40-year-old workhorse train cars -- the oldest in the nation -- with sleeker ones, BART wants rider input on new seating configurations. They're conducting beta testing labs this week and next at various locations. more ›

KGO is reporting that a woman was struck by a cable car at the intersection of Broadway and Mason at around 10:30 a.m. on Saturday morning after she "darted" in front of it, according to witnesses. The cable car passengers said they tried to warn the woman to look out, as the operator was unable to stop the car in time. more ›

A man died in an apparent suicide on the train tracks in Burlingame this afternoon. SFGate reports: "The northbound train hit the man on the right-of-way at Peninsula Avenue shortly before 12:20 p.m.," which resulted in a 90-minute delay. more ›

BART announced in a rather confusing manner that there will be delays through the Transbay Tube this weekend and next. What it boils down to is that passengers traveling between San Francisco/Peninsula and the East Bay can expect 20-40 minute delays between the 24-hour period of 2:30 p.m. Sunday through 2:30 p.m. Monday, this weekend and next. more ›

Oh, the joys of the cable car commuter: To breezily rush out the door at the sound of the gripman's bell. To feel the California sun on your face and the cool Bay breeze through your hair as you coast downhill to some Union Square-adjacent office building. The knowing looks that tell your driver, "Hey, I'm a local. Only tourists pay for this thing." All that just before some dick's camera swings to catch you in the face and the cable car inevitably rear-ends a double-parked SUV. None of those joys are available to Powell-Mason riders today because that thing is out of service until further notice. So you'll have to take the shuttle bus instead. Just like the rest of us. Or at least the Powell-Hyde. [BCN/Appeal] more ›

A 17-year-old girl told police she was accosted by an older man on a crowded southbound 14 Mission bus this afternoon at 16th and Mission a little after 3:30 p.m. Acting in self-defense, the teen sprayed the man with pepper spray, which also struck two elderly passengers and the bus driver. more ›

ABC7 broadcast this rather shocking video that was posted on YouTube of an outbound L train being driven with the door wide open at the Van Ness station for almost a full minute on Friday evening. What we find more shocking is how none of the passengers seemed fazed by the situation, and no one hit the emergency brake. Luckily the operator finally noticed the error and shut the doors. Also, isn't that Scott Wiener in the foreground? See the video below. more ›

On the heels of two Muni messes, SFist's Leanne Maxwell tell us about another meltdown currently in progress. A broken-down inbound train in the tunnel between Duboce and Van Ness is causing delays this afternoon. 511 reports, "On Wednesday, March 9th, at 4:05pm, SF Muni reports Inbound delays on the L-Line at Van Ness Station due to mechanical problem." more ›

A 61-year-old man was found unresponsive on a northbound Caltrain yesterday afternoon, which was stopped at the Hillsdale station. A crew member called for medical assistance at about 2 p.m., and emergency personnel found the passenger dead when they arrived. more ›

BART will extend its service until 3 a.m. on New Year's Day to accommodate the large number of people attending the New Year's Eve fireworks show along Embarcadero. Trains will be running once every 20 minutes after the event with additional trains to handle the crowd. more ›

BART trains are now running on schedule this morning after service was disrupted along the Transbay Tube yesterday. Smoke was reported at around 1:45 p.m. near the Oakland end. After a brief closure of the tube, trains ran along a single track, one direction at a time. The preliminary cause of the fire was mineral build up on insulation for BART's third rail, causing a flash over. more ›

Bay City News tells us (via SF Appeal) that on Saturday evening, a BART passenger got his leg stuck between the train and the platform when exiting at the Walnut Creek station. It isn't known how the incident occurred. more ›

SFist rode the 38 out to the Richmond and back today, and along the way we encountered about seven fare inspectors. more ›

Remember when BART effed themselves out of that $70 million in federal stimulus money because they failed to document how higher fares and a possible "major service change" would affect low-income and minority transit riders? The government said that the planned Oakland Airport tram project could be in violation of Title VI of the Civil Rights Act, and ever since the decision BART has spent $800,000 on consultants and public meetings to solve this issue, as Matier and Ross are reporting, despite the fact that they'll never see that $70M again. more ›

UPDATE II: Muni finally got back to SF Appeal regarding the snafu explaining that Muni doors are not like elevator doors -- never try to keep them from closing because it damages the doors, and people, apparently. But what if the driver doesn't give exiting passengers enough time to get off?! more ›

Due to a small fire on the tracks between the Powell and Civic Center station "that knocked out key equipment" this morning, BART service, according to The Chronicle (and not a BART update!?), will be "sluggish" all day and night. more ›

Via BARTfail, njudah: "FYI If you just boarded sf/millbrae line in Berkeley, watch out for tall guy with 711 coffee cup. Cup is full of urine, ewwwww." more ›

Yesterday we encountered a ridiculous amount of pigeon poo covering the floor of the 16th Street BART Station. That can't be healthy. What gives, BART? more ›

Fed up with Muni's simultaneous fare hikes and cuts in service? A lot of folks are. This isn't new. But there's this march on Muni happening on Monday at 5 p.m. at Powell and Market. more ›

This contributor recently had a baby, who is now two and a half months old. It's been quite a fun journey exploring the city with such a wee one. (We highly recommend the Ergo Carrier for such journeys. Strollers are a pain.) more ›

After the Governor tried to raid public transit funds and was stopped by the courts, he's after the money again, but with a different shell game. As pointed out by Damien Newton at Streestblog LA, the LA Times reports that "the governor would eliminate the sales tax on gas and, at the same time, impose a new per-gallon excise tax. Drivers would pay about 5 cents less per gallon at the pump. The excise tax would not be subject to voter-approved spending requirements for public transit." Ouch. more ›

UPDATE: BART announced at 7 p.m. today that they have come to a temporary agreement with the Amalgamated Transit Union, and tomorrow's strike has been canceled. The following terms will remain in effect until a new contract agreement is reached: more ›

SF Appeal reports that Muni will be replacing all existing fare gates at its underground Metro stations with TransLink-only fare gates (PDF) by fall of 2010, and it's possible Fast Passes will only be available electronically as well. more ›