Muni Diaries

Muni’s problems go beyond late buses and smelly passengers — recent crimes on Muni are just another example of the issues that face our public transit system. So, how do we fix it?

Yesterday we gave you a peek of what some of the candidates for District 10 supervisor say about fixing Muni’s ails. Today we bring you more video interviews from Chris Rogers at the San Francisco Young Democrats Supervisor candidates forum last week, where he asked the candidates: What’s wrong with Muni and how would you fix it?

Before fixing the problem, supervisors need more control over the MTA board and a “real transit-first agenda,” candidate Eric Smith says. Smith questions the budget for the Central Subway: “When I think about the hundreds and millions being spent on that, couldn’t we use that to improve Muni?” Smith says he wants to meet with the stakeholders, riders, transit activists to come up with ideas.

Candidate Chris Jackson thinks Muni needs more senior shuttles, and he also wants Muni to explore water transit options (an idea that candidate Kristin Enea also mentioned). Jackson also says that the conversation about Muni should not be about making a profit. (See Chris Jackson’s video response)

One of Muni’s major problems is that “we cannot get a balanced Muni budget,” candidate Dewitt Lacy says. The solution? “Cut out the fat” and examine middle management in the city’s transit agency. (see Dewitt Lacy’s video response)

The supervisor candidates are far from the first to jump into the fray on improving Muni’s various shortcomings –Dave Snyder’s SF Transit Riders Union, Rescue Muni, Fix Muni Now, are just a few of the advocacy groups that come to mind.

Want to know more about what your district supervisor candidates think about public transit? Greg Dewar at the N-Judah Chronicles has launched a resource called the Muni Rider Voter Guide where he has sent all candidates questions about our transit systems.

What do you think of the solutions we heard from District 10?

Video reporting from Chris Rogers. Chris has just started a website called M Ocean View Journal. These videos are in collaboration of the YouTube/ABC7 uReport project, with which Muni Diaries is also a partner. You can read more about the YouTube project in this story by Matt Baume for Poynter.org.

Think you know how to fix Muni’s problems? The candidates running for the District 10 supervisor seat seem to think they do. We can probably spend all day talking about Muni’s problems, so Muni Diaries reporter Christopher Rogers went to the District 10 Forum last week and gave the candidates just a couple of minutes to answer the question: What’s wrong with Muni and how would you fix it?

Candidate Steve Moss wants to see if we can “network together the Bauer buses that take people to Google and the vans that take people to UCSF Mission Bay campus and all the other kinds of the vehicles that are on our streets” to create a “more diverse transportation system.” (see his video response). For background, Streetsblog SF had an excellent story about employee shuttle buses in the city.

And why limit buses to just the streets? “I would like to see Muni explore water transit,” candidate Kristine Enea said.

Then there is candidate Malia Cohen, who wants a “multilingual approach” to running Muni and told us that from the riders’ experience, “poles need to be lowered, we also need to have more accommodations for mothers coming on with strollers.” (see Cohen’s video response)

As you know, District 10 covers the Bayview, Dog Patch, central waterfront, and parts of Potrero. If you live in District 10, what do you think of the candidates’ answers so far?

Check back tomorrow for complete video responses from the District 10 candidates and the story from Chris.

These videos are in collaboration of the YouTube/ABC7 uReport project, with which Muni Diaries is also a partner. You can read more about the YouTube project in this story by Matt Baume for Poynter.org.