Muni

Testimony on Central Subway

Testimony Before the S. F. Supes Audit Comm.
10/27/11 Hearing on Civil Grand Jury Report on Central Subway


Supervisors,
We are transit advocates, working primarily at the regional and statewide level. We have opposed the Central Subway for years, because instead of being a well- designed cost-effective transportation project, it is primarily a political payoff.

The Grand Jury deserves the thanks of all San Franciscans for their willingness to dive into an incredibly dense thicket of details and their courage to call a spade a spade. Their report is a proud addition to the long tradition of speaking truth to power.

The fundamental project design problems raised in the report are so serious that they necessitate a response from the Board on recommendations 16 - 20, even though you weren't specifically asked to. If the Board ignores these recommendations, it will send a strong message of “hear no evil, see no evil, speak no evil.”

As Mr. Reskin, the MTA head said, the questions about this project were asked and answered. However, the answers were so steeped in politics as to be worthless. The Grand Jury is telling your Board that the Emperor has no clothes. Future generations will remember you as the Board members that ignored their message and put Muni into an extended fiscal crisis.

Save Muni.com Getting Great Press


Here are a series of articles instigated by the great work of Save Muni.com. They are campaigning to inform the public about the folly of Muni’s Central Subway. Amazingly, this $1.5 billion boondoggle will lead to reduced bus service and even longer travel times. Check out these articles:
Read More...

Central Subway--Vigorous Radio Debate

TRANSDEF’s President David Schonbrunn debated the Central Subway Project Manager on KALW Radio’s City Vision’s program. Check out the podcast.

David argued that the subway is so deep that the time it will take to access it will eliminate the travel time savings over the current bus. Also, the route is so badly designed that a transfer to BART and Muni lines will require over a 1000 ft. walk. Residents of Bayview/Hunters Point, who now have a convenient transfer to all the Market Street trains, will lose that connection when the Third Street Line goes direct to Chinatown.