Fast Passes are so last November
Samantha passes along a pretty frightening find:
Saw these scattered at the 38 Geary stop at Powell and Geary.
Who in their right mind would discard these gold nuggets so willy-nilly?
Muni Increases Minimum Add Value Requirement on Clipper Cards
Photo by Mark Nakamura
Starting March 1, Muni is increasing the minimum add-value requirement on Clipper cards from $2 to $5 to prevent riders from taking advantage of loophole that allows you to board the bus even when your card goes negative. This applies to Clipper adult fare customers. From the SFMTA:
The new minimum add-value requirement is $5 or a fare product, e.g. an adult Muni “A” or “M” Fast Pass®. The new policy does not affect the minimum requirement on the Youth, Senior or RTC Clipper cards, which is currently $.75.
The new minimum requirement generally only applies to customers who are purchasing a new Adult Clipper card and want to add cash value at the time of purchase.
…
At the Muni Metro ticket vending machines (TVM), however, whether purchasing a new Clipper card or reloading an existing Clipper card, Muni adult fare customers are subject to the minimum $5 requirement, regardless of the current value on the existing card. Muni Metro customers who do not wish to pay this $5 minimum may instead purchase a single or round trip regular adult fare Limited Use Muni Ticket out of the TVM.
The minimum requirement doesn’t apply to customers with existing Clipper cards who want to reload cash value at Clipper card retailers, the Clipper website, or the add-Value machines at AC Transit or Golden Gate Ferry locations.
Will this deter fare scammers? Akit at Akit’s Complaint Department thinks SFMTA should do more. “This is not enough to stop the abuse by raising the minimum e-cash to $5 for a new card. Caltrain and BART passengers that ride long distances can still exploit the Clipper card’s negative balance by getting a ton of free cards with the minimum balance of $5 required to obtain a card,” he writes.
Weekend Photos: In Technicolor
Photo by Troy Holden
In Muni news this week:
- Muni chief Nathaniel Ford eyeing D.C. post (SFGate)
- Driver salaries fueling deficit (SF Examiner)
- Frustrated Clipper Card users to receive new customer service location (SF Examiner, SFAppeal)
- Mayor Lee Must Make SFMTA Act Quickly on TEP Implementation (Streetsblog SF)
- Another Reason MTA Head Nat Ford Might Want to Flee SF: Tax Troubles (SF Appeal)
- Mayor Lee Rides Muni Occasionally (The Bay Citizen)
- New low-floor Muni buses bring some passengers down (SF Examiner)
- SFMTA to repair Muni rail segment over the weekend (KGO, SF Appeal)
- Muni faces possible fines over numerous safety violations (see our summary)
- SFMTA to repair Muni rail segment (ABC7)
Enjoy these photos and your weekend! Will there be snow?
Photo by mtarlock
Photo by Ariel Dovas
Photo by librarygroover
Photo by carlosgomez
Muni faces possible fines over numerous safety violations
Photo by joemud
One of the trouble spots, to no sane person’s surprise, is Church and Duboce. Just yesterday, however, right before we started seeing the reports of the CPUC’s investigation, we received an email from SFMTA noting
planned rail maintenance work for this weekend.
San Francisco Business Journal lists the other major allegations, and the SF Examiner also has a story up.
While we certainly agree with the need for SFMTA to be within regulations, we’d hate to see the already fiscally challenged agency slapped with heavy fines. We’ll do our best to follow up on this case, and report it back here on Muni Diaries.
Should we talk about the weather? Hi, hi, hi
We know what’s on your mind as Friday gets under way. No, not that, you perv. It’s this “weather” we’re having. That thing everyone is either freaking out about or making fun of us for.
This being San Francisco, several citizens have answered the unsolicited call to help us cope with these trying times. Behold, Mat Honan’s Is It Snowing in San Francisco, from which the image above comes.
And the Pepsi to Mat’s Coke, Sean C. send us the following dispatch:
I got bored at work Thursday and threw together a silly site that will be completely irrelevant in a few days. I love it.
Too lazy to look out your window to see if the mythical snow has arrived? Check out Is It Snowing in SF Yet.
So now you’re totally in the know about one of the three topics to occupy all conversations for at least the next 24 hours. Enjoy!
Will this Muni get me to Mos Eisley?
Eagle-eyed Star Wars fan (the original trilogy, what?) @dalbizo spotted this Jedi lookalike on the 38L-Geary this afternoon. He tweets:
Call me silly, but I think Ben Kenobi’s brother is riding on the 38L. Ken Kenobi?
When stopped by fare inspectors, did he wave his hand and say, “These aren’t the scofflaws you’re looking for.”? Yep, thought so. Clever old bastard …