Author: eugenia

Eugenia Chien has been eavesdropping on the 47, 49, or 1 lines since the mid-90's. She lives by the adage, "Anything can happen on Muni" (and also, "That's not water.")

Weekend Photos: Grey Like This

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Hub
Photo by Justin Beck

TGIF and everything, but tomorrow is a real celebration here at Muni Diaries. Why? I’ll tell you tomorrow afternoon. Sorry to be such a tease! Meanwhile, Jeff’s away from the helm and I’m woman-ing the ship for a few days. In Muni news this week:

By now complaints about our freezing grey summer probably sounds like a broken record. You know what might chase the cold away, though? A fun night at Edinburgh Castle, hosted by The Tenderblog. The Tenderbloggers are hosting their first TenderNight next Wednesday at 8 p.m. as an ode to their ‘hood. It’s an open-mic competition so if you’ve got stories to tell (especially ones involving the bus, for my obvious selfish reasons), make sure you go prepared!

Enjoy your weekend and these photos.

passage
Photo by Flickr user telmo32

MUNI
Photo by Flickr user Kanaka Menehune

MunI 8354
Photo by Flickr user Paul Sullivan

Category: diaries Tags:

Clipper Card Woes: Overcharges and Cable Car Fail?

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I had planned on getting my August fastpass on a Clipper card
Photo by Steve Rhodes

We’ve got more reports of Clipper card issues. Rider Denise said she was overcharged on the 6 “Sassy Parnassy.” Her transaction history showed the wrong time:

August 7th, Saturday afternoon. At about 3:45 p.m. my friend and I are at 15th and Castro. We’re waiting for the 24 Divisadero to take us on one of two buses to the Upper Haight, with punch bowls from Hobson’s on our minds. We both tag our respective Clipper/Translink cards on the 24 at about 3:50. We get off at Haight and Divisadero and catch a 6 (Sassy Parnassy, as we like to call it) five minutes later towards our final destination. Once we tag our cards on the 6, the machine takes another two dollars off our accounts in addition to the initial tagging on the 24, making our two-buses-within-20-minutes trip a total of $4 dollars.

I’m broke, on summer break from school and unemployed so I had the time and energy to look into this. My transaction history shows my first tag on the 24 at 6:20 a.m. instead of something closer to 4 p.m.. My thought was obviously that the time on the 24’s Clipper machine was off (I was definitely NOT up at 6:20 a.m. on a Saturday). After spending a good hour on the phone with a personable woman from Clipper, I have the possibility of a refund after an “investigation” given my “report.” So until I hear back from Clipper, I’m stocking up on quarters and giving my card a rest.

I’m curious if this has happened to anyone else? Maybe if your accounts seem lower than it should, you should keep an eye on your balances after tagging your card.

Rider Mary reports another Clipper card reader malfunction on the cable car:

This morning I was on the cable car on my regular commute coming down Powell St. to Market turnaround. The conductor asked for my card, apparently scanned it, and incorrectly told me that my Clipper (Translink) card, which has the August Muni Fast Pass loaded on it, was invalid. I told the conductor that the card did indeed have a valid Fast Pass loaded on it and that so far this month it has worked on Muni cable cars, buses, etc. He said that he would let me ride this time but not again.

Clipper had gotten off to a rocky star this month with Wageworks issues, and we know Muni has had clock error issues (reported by KGO about the cameras on the bus). Have you been overcharged when you use your Clipper card? Let us know.

Category: diaries Tags:

Clipper Card Woes: Overcharges and Cable Car Fail?

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I had planned on getting my August fastpass on a Clipper card
Photo by Steve Rhodes

We’ve got more reports of Clipper card issues. Rider Denise said she was overcharged on the 6 “Sassy Parnassy.” Her transaction history showed the wrong time:

August 7th, Saturday afternoon. At about 3:45 p.m. my friend and I are at 15th and Castro. We’re waiting for the 24 Divisadero to take us on one of two buses to the Upper Haight, with punch bowls from Hobson’s on our minds. We both tag our respective Clipper/Translink cards on the 24 at about 3:50. We get off at Haight and Divisadero and catch a 6 (Sassy Parnassy, as we like to call it) five minutes later towards our final destination. Once we tag our cards on the 6, the machine takes another two dollars off our accounts in addition to the initial tagging on the 24, making our two-buses-within-20-minutes trip a total of $4 dollars.

I’m broke, on summer break from school and unemployed so I had the time and energy to look into this. My transaction history shows my first tag on the 24 at 6:20 a.m. instead of something closer to 4 p.m.. My thought was obviously that the time on the 24’s Clipper machine was off (I was definitely NOT up at 6:20 a.m. on a Saturday). After spending a good hour on the phone with a personable woman from Clipper, I have the possibility of a refund after an “investigation” given my “report.” So until I hear back from Clipper, I’m stocking up on quarters and giving my card a rest.

I’m curious if this has happened to anyone else? Maybe if your accounts seem lower than it should, you should keep an eye on your balances after tagging your card.

Rider Mary reports another Clipper card reader malfunction on the cable car:

This morning I was on the cable car on my regular commute coming down Powell St. to Market turnaround. The conductor asked for my card, apparently scanned it, and incorrectly told me that my Clipper (Translink) card, which has the August Muni Fast Pass loaded on it, was invalid. I told the conductor that the card did indeed have a valid Fast Pass loaded on it and that so far this month it has worked on Muni cable cars, buses, etc. He said that he would let me ride this time but not again.

Clipper had gotten off to a rocky star this month with Wageworks issues, and we know Muni has had clock error issues (reported by KGO about the cameras on the bus). Have you been overcharged when you use your Clipper card? Let us know.

Category: News

On Muni, the Camera is Mightier Than…

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Photo by Flickr user Jessie Johnson

When photographer and friend Julie Michelle sat next to a man who started to make her really uncomfortable, her camera became a way to stop his behavior. But as a photographer, that fact made her equally uneasy. Here’s what happened, from Julie’s blog:

I sat in the back … the middle seat was then taken by a young man with a large duffel bag. He found a way to really wedge himself between me and the other woman, touching our sides more than I am used to even on a crowded bus. He did not look at either of us. Did not apologize for sitting on my coat, the little niceties that people make when crammed together because that is the nature of public transportation.

He spread the long, flat, dirty canvas tote bag across his lap. … So I looked down, and under the duffle bag I could see that he was masturbating. That was the wiggling. That was why he flattened the bag and flattened himself against us. I don’t think the girl [next to him] knew what was going on. I looked straight ahead.

At the next stop, several people got off the bus and I moved to the seat perpendicular to him.

I took his photo.

He pretended not to see me and kept on with his activities.

I took another photo of him: zooming in on his face, his hand in his pants–and this time he looked at me.

I took another photo of him.

He got off the bus at the next stop.

When I asked Julie about the incident later, she said, “I have never pointed my camera at someone with the intent to make that person uncomfortable. I was uncomfortable doing it, just as I would have been if I would have shouted or drawn attention to him verbally. I don’t know if this person was mentally ill or what, and I am certain I didn’t stop his future behavior, but perhaps I gave him pause in turning the tables just a bit.”

We’ve documented more than a few instances of bad behavior on the bus, and technically the bus is a public space, so what Julie did didn’t seem so out of line to me. But everyone has a different opinion on photography on the bus. What would you do if you had to confront someone who’s behaving badly on the bus?

Category: WTF: Weirdness on Muni Tags:
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