A Truck That Can Tow Mountains

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Here we are on Powell just south of North Point on a Wednesday afternoon; I think we’re looking at a 9 or a 9x. And yes, it’s definitely getting towed.

So, what? Dead engine? Run out of gas? Flat tire(s)? Kind of embarrassing if any of those is the case, because a Muni hotel (parking lot/servicing spot) is less than a block from here. Also, this is the third or fourth stop from the start of the line. I think I speak for everyone when I say, “WTF?”

Obvious questions include: why’s it getting towed? Were people on this bus? Did a bus come to save the day? (SuperBus wasn’t that one in the background, if you were wondering). And was this a freak mechanical/electrical uh-oh or does this happen fairly regularly? Where’s Judson True when you need him?

— Tara

The Good Ol’ 39-Coit Will Keep Truckin’

Reposted, with permission, from Tony Long’s North Beach Examiner

The 39-Coit has been saved.

Thanks to the tireless efforts of neighborhood activists and a sudden moment of lucidity from the MTA board, Telegraph Hill’s bus will live to drive another day. Not only that, but the Union Street leg of the route, which was to be lopped off in any case, will be preserved, too.

And not only that, but Muni now favors extending the line to Pier 39, something 39 advocates have been beseeching them to do for some time now. (Numerology alone would seem to favor this extension, wouldn’t it?)

The MTA board took the action Tuesday, finally acknowledging that a viable bus up to Coit Tower is the best way to reduce traffic on the hill. As part of the plan to extend the line to Pier 39, the Muni said it expects Fisherman’s Wharf merchants and the community at large to help publicize the 39-Coit to help increase the ridership.

Keeping the Union Street leg is especially good news for hill residents. Try walking up to Montgomery with a couple of bags of groceries sometime and you’ll know what I mean. Try it with a couple of balky Achilles tendons and you really know what I mean.

Anyway, I don’t get to say this often but I’ll say it now: Thanks, Muni.

More on our reaction to Tuesday’s TEP vote coming soon. — Jeff

Infect Me Not on Muni

San Francisco’s health department is launching a public awareness campaign called “Infect Me Not,” Chronicle’s City Insider reports. It promotes basic “healthy habits” like stay at home when you’re sick, wash your hands often, don’t share personal items, etc.

Unfortunately this public campaign doesn’t have rules specific to Muni, which I think really deserves a public health campaign of its own. If you’ve been reading our Gross section, you’d know that health department should include a “Do Not Fart or Defecate” rule, a “Avoid Spraying Toxic Fumes” rule, and a “Leave the Personal Grooming at Home” rule. I mean, at the very least, as the ladies at Muni Manners would agree, cover your mouth when you cough and please, for the love of god, use the other hand to hold the metal rail!

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