Photo: Susan Vaughan

The MTA, in the middle of a $129 million budget
shortfall, plans to reduce bus service to the outer avenues at various
points in the Richmond District, already one of the most difficult parts of San Francisco to reach via
public transportation.

“It sucks,” said Richmond resident Sandy Newport who lives near
40th and Fulton and works at 12th and Clement and was specifically concerned about plans to eliminate the
38-Ocean Beach bus.  “I’m a hairdresser, and
I have lots of elderly clients who depend on the bus to come here and
get food,” she said as she waited for the bus outside the Safeway at La
Playa and Cabrillo.

At the same time that bus service will be reduced, fares
will go up.  Starting July 1, the one-time fare will go from $1.50 to
$2.00; fast Passes will go from $45 to $55, and then to $60 by January
1, 2010; and the new Fast Passes will no longer be BART-enabled. 
Richmond residents who take buses downtown and then transfer to BART to
go to the Mission District or beyond will now have to pay an extra $10
for a pass that will also work on BART within the City.  The Senior,
Youth, and Disabled Pass will go from the current $10 to $15 in July
and to $20 by January 1.

“I
don’t care if they raise the fare,” said Newport.  “I’d rather pay more
and have the service than have to walk further and wait longer.  It
doesn’t seem fair that they are doing both.”

A rider waiting for the 38 at Cabrillo near La Playa who wouldn’t identify himself noted that part of the
current budget debacle was due to the passage of the 2007 Proposition A
charter amendment that turned the operator salary into a floor,
dictated by operator pay for the two highest paid public transportation
systems in the country.

Mira, a Russian immigrant on a fixed income, had not known about
the increases in passes for seniors. When she found out, she spoke
for herself and her husband.  “I think it’s too much,” she said,
shaking her head.

Another rider, Lina Chao, thought the increases in bus fares were
unavoidable.  “The price of oil and the salaries of employees are
increasing,” she said, though she was not pleased about the route
changes. “It will be very inconvenient, especially to go
to the Safeway.”

To try to address concerns like these, MTA Executive
Director Nat Ford wrote in a May 22 memo that fare increases and service cutbacks could be
mitigated by potential service enhancements to various lines serving
the Richmond District.

The MTA plans to increase peak period frequency of 38-L (from
Financial District to Point Lobos) from 7 to 6 minutes and extend
weekday service hours from 6:45 pm to 9 pm.  The 5-Fulton will increase
frequency in the morning and late afternoon, east of 6th Avenue.  And
the 1AX- California will extend to 6th Avenue, with the 1BX-California
starting near 6th Avenue instead of Park Presidio (where it now starts)
in order to reduce overcrowding on the 1BX.

None of these potential service enhancements, however, seem to
really address the issue of service cutbacks to the outer avenues,
especially during non-peak periods.

When Outer Richmond resident and SFBC Program Director Andy Thornley realized that service on
the 5-Fulton would be reduced past 6th Avenue, he was not pleased. 
Thornley said he had been looking forward to the 5 getting better
through implementation of the MTA’s Transit Effectiveness Project
before the budget crisis hit.  “It’s definitely discouraging to see the
5 get worse” past 6th Avenue, he said.

Other service changes in the Richmond District, according to a link on the MTA website:

• The 5-Fulton past 6th Avenue will be cut in half during peak periods.
• The wait time between 31-Balboa buses will go from its current 10 minutes to 12 minutes.
• The 18-46th Avenue, which currently goes from the Legion of Honor,
  south on 33rd to Geary, and west on Geary past Sutro Heights and the
  Cliff House, will be rerouted to traverse the route that the 38-Ocean
  Beach now travels from 33rd Avenue to the Safeway at La Playa.
• The 2-Clement will cease to operate past 14th Avenue, and the 4-Sutter will be entirely eliminated.
• The segment of the 1-California that goes south of Market Street to
  Howard along Main and Beale will be eliminated.  This may not seem
  significant to residents of other parts of the City.  However, without
  light rail or BART, Muni-dependent residents of the Richmond District
  find getting almost anywhere beyond the Financial District
  time-consuming and awkward.  Right now, the 1-California is the only
  bus from the Richmond District that makes it past the Transbay Terminal
  into SoMa.
• The 29, though not part of the downtown feeder system, will
  cease operation north of Baker Beach.  Riders destined for the Golden
  Gate Bridge or the Presidio Main Post will have to transfer there to the
  PresidiGo, a free shuttle operated by the Presidio Trust.