Bryan Goebel

Why is San Francisco -- considered by many around the world to be a “progressive” and “green" city with a Transit First policy -- still debating whether to extend meter hours and parking enforcement, even in the face of a crippling Muni budget deficit? Didn't we merge Muni with the Department of Parking and Traffic precisely so policy decisions about management of the streets would benefit the operations of transit, bicycling, and walking?

House Committee Passes Climate Change Bill Mostly Along Party Lines (SF Gate) Obama Emissions Deal Took Weeks of “Hardball Negotiations” (LAT) Will New Standards Actually Mean an Increase in Driving? (NARP Blog) “Will Muni Be Thrown Under the Bus?” (Car-Free Talk) Muni Diaries: “Cable Car Confessions: The Conductor’s Daughter” Proposal Would Make Transit Free for … Continued

Caltrain has dropped an idea to make bicyclists pay a $1 surcharge to help solve its budget deficit. In an email this afternoon, Mark Simon, the special assistant to the Caltrain CEO, wrote "a bicycle surcharge will not be part of the budget proposals for the coming fiscal year." He also updated efforts to create more bicycle capacity on the system:

CO2 Emissions Declined By 2.8 Percent in 2008; Higher Gas Prices Cited (SF Gate) Environmental Groups Fight Chevron Refinery Expansion in Richmond (ABC7) Pedestrian Killed on Highway 101 in Santa Rosa (Press Democrat) Toronto Prioritizes Peds Even as Drivers Continue to Buy Cars (Toronto Sun via Planetizen) Can Stop Signs Calm Traffic? (Newtown Streets via … Continued

Transportation Authority Releases Car-Free Market Study (SF Gate)  CHSRB: “Will GE Get Into the High-Speed Rail Business?” ABC7’s Take on Transit Justice Package: “Supervisors Try to Soften Blow” While the Examiner Says Meter Hours “Put Muni Budget in Limbo” More on Muni’s New $13 Million Shortfall (KCBS) Chronicle Story Spotlights 24-Line, “View of San Francisco’s … Continued

The Board of Supervisors will try again on an MTA budget, voting 7-4 this afternoon to delay a motion to reject it. Instead, they'll hold a special meeting Wednesday, May 27th, at noon.

Supervisor John Avalos, leading the charge for a Muni budget that is more equitably balanced between drivers and transit riders, was joined Monday by a broad coalition of advocates, including groups representing seniors and youth, in a rally designed to pressure the MTA into restoring about $15 million in revenue measures carved out of the original plan. It preceded a march to the MTA where Avalos and advocates demanded and got a meeting with MTA Chief Nat Ford (hear the audio below) on the eve of a Board of Supervisors meeting to consider another rejection motion.

Obama Emissions Plan Modeled After California (SF Gate, ENS) House Climate Bill Funds Auto Industry But Not Transit (RT Rider via Streetsblog.net) SF Examiner Editorial Questioning Climate Change Hits New Low (SFBG) Two Dollar Muni Fare Hike Plotted in 2005 (Beyond Chron) NY DOT’s Janette Sadik-Khan ‘Equal Parts Jane Jacobs and Robert Moses’ (NY Mag) … Continued

Supervisor John Avalos Takes the Lead on the Muni Budget (Beyond Chron)  SF Examiner: “Higher Muni Fare Evasion Fines Pitched” Sizing Up Muni at Bay to Breakers (SF Appeal) BART Director Fang Insists Phone Card Will Prove Translink Obsolete (Matier & Ross)  Independent Auditor Would Investigate Civilian Complaints Against BART Police (SF Gate) Examiner Editorial … Continued

San Francisco Supervisor John Avalos is proposing a charter amendment "that will provide greater checks and balances and independence for the MTA Board of Directors." Avalos, along with other supervisors and transit advocates, plan to announce their own MTA budget proposals (PDF) and rally on the steps of City Hall Monday: