By Samantha McGirr
The Public Press
Although thousands of San Franciscans rely on public transit to commute to work every day, the city’s lack of funding is making it increasingly difficult for them to do so, the San Francisco Examiner reported Wednesday.
Owing to its current fiscal problems, the city is considering a 15 percent reduction in the SamTrans budget. The program currently has a deficit of $28.4 million, and, as a means of cutting costs, is considering eliminating or modifying up to 21 service routes. Other possible changes include increasing per adult trip fares by up to 25 cents, increasing paratransit fares by up to 75 cents, and eliminating the 15 percent discount on SamTrans passes with the purchase of the Muni sticker.
Those whose commute includes walking are also feeling the economic pinch. San Francisco does not have adequate funds to repair its cracked sidewalks, which include more than 12,000 gnarled locations. Almost all of the damage has been done by city-owned trees; their underground roots lift and warp the pavement and create the potential for lawsuits from trip-and-fall accidents.
The city is turning to the public to correct these problems. The Department of Public Works is actively backing a $368 million bond proposal for street repairs that would go before voters in November and include $10.1 million for sidewalk rehabilitation. If approved with a two-thirds majority by voters, the proposal would go a long way in funding the $17 million in sidewalk improvements that are past due.
Ed Reiskin, director of DPW, called the proposed improvements a “smart investment for San Francisco” and said they are necessary “to maintain the city’s policy as a transit-first place.”
In the case of the proposed SamTrans cuts, the transit agency is holding four community meetings next week. The meetings, designed to garner public input, include one at the Municipal Building at 33 Arroyo Drive in South San Francisco.
