Rescue Muni

We are sadden to write of the passing of our vice-chair Daniel Murphy.

As vice chair of Rescue Muni, he co-authored 1999 Prop E which founded the SFMTA. He chaired the SFMTA CAC for many years and pressed for a fact-based approach to improving service for SF transit riders. He spend hundreds of hours presenting findings and issues directly to the SFMTA board every month. He had an intelligent sense of humor that made people listen to his thoughts and ideas on transportation advocacy.

Daniel’s passing is a loss for Rescue Muni and he will be missed. His contributions to San Francisco were incredible and will never be forgotten.

Mark Ballew – Rescue Muni Chair

Under city law, Muni is  considered on-time if a bus or train is no more than one minute early or four minutes late. Due to rounding, any time after the minute is rounded down, so a bus or train could be measured as being 4 minutes and 59 seconds late, but still be considered “on-time”. Based on research from the Bay Citizen, the actual Q4 2011 on-time rate was 61.4%, not 71%.

Muni’s on time rate was slightly more timely than usual, now 71.7% for 2011 Q4 compared to Q3’s 71.1%. This ratio continues to fall short of the voter mandated 85% on time rate from 1999’s Prop E. The record for best on time rate based on Prop E’s measurement was set in July 2010: 75%.

The Board of Supervisors postponed until next week a vote on the controversial proposed charter amendment we wrote about yesterday.  Board of Supervisors president David Chiu said me might be willing to put off the amendment until next year, depending on the outcome of discussions with Mayor Newsom’s office about Muni service.  Postponing the amendment (or forgetting about it entirely) would be a positive development for Muni riders.

The law allows supervisors to place only one more charter amendment on the November 2010 ballot between now and Friday, July 30th.  Let’s hope it isn’t this one.

We urge Muni riders to call their supervisors between now and next Tuesday’s meeting and urge them to shelve the SFMTA amendment indefinitely.  All of their phone numbers and e-mail addresses are here.  The SFMTA isn’t perfect, but we believe strongly this measure would move the agency and Muni service in exactly the wrong direction.

Update: Greg Dewar of N Judah Chronicles has a thoughtful commentary on this issue.

Today, the Board of Supervisors is scheduled to vote on whether to place a charter amendment on the November ballot dramatically changing how the San Francisco Municipal Transportation Agency, which runs Muni, is governed.  We’re urging our members to contact their supervisors and urge them to vote against placing this measure on the ballot.

You can read the proposed text here.

This well-intentioned proposal moves Muni in the wrong direction in several important respects:
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