A Look Back on a Year of Muni Diaries
Photo by Flickr user joshleejosh
In the last year we saw the ups and downs of transit-riding in San Francisco, marked by your Muni tales and pictures. 2009 was also the first calendar year that Muni Diaries was live. We saw major Muni service cuts and fare hikes, an iPhone app controversy, and a stepped-up proof-of-payment game from SFMTA. We also saw disturbing crimes on Muni ranging from iPhone thefts to a body found on the 5-Fulton in the bus yard, and the stabbing of a boy on his first solo Muni ride. And who can forget the infamous Muni humper?
But thanks to your submissions, we saw that riding the bus can also be a shared activity that makes us smile. I really couldn’t help but say “aaaw” when we received this photo of two very sleepy passengers leaning on a reluctant and awake third. Julie Michelle’s picture of kids playing a handheld game on Muni and the surprising waterfall at the Van Ness station are still some of my favorite posts.
At Muni Diaries, sometimes we get photos that really just need no caption, like one of Jeff’s favorite posts, Muni Say What? by Steve. From Jeff: “This photo perfectly illustrates what many riders (and readers) feel Muni thinks of them. It’s also just hilarious. You’re not allowed to disagree.”
As we’ve always said, Muni Diaries lives on your transit stories. Jeff pointed out a memorable diary titled, Muni driver going the opposite of rogue. From Jeff: “Now, from a literal standpoint, what the driver did was more aberrant than roguish. Never mind that. I just like the post because the driver shows that he’s human, a fact we forget all too often. Sometimes, rightly so.”
We ran some numbers on the site and here are the top posts that you viewed in 2009:
3. Anyone got change for a five?
4. Interview with the woman who broke up the Muni fight
5. Hump and Run on the N-Judah
Because Muni Diaries is all about your life on Muni — be it public transit issues or the random, sometimes poignant, more often than not annoying things that happen on Muni — we want to remind you to keep the stories coming! Whether it’s sharing your Muni soundtrack, pics of odd finds on the bus, or opinions on Muni news, we want to know.
We also want to know what your most memorable 2009 stories on Muni Diaries were. Let us know in comments.
We hope you enjoyed reading and submitting the stories as much as we did publishing them. And here’s to an even more thrilling roller coaster ride in 2010!