SF Mayors Miss New York City’s Main Lesson

But no San Francisco mayor has apparently recognized the one aspect of NYC that SF desperately needs – a public transit system that operates efficiently outside weekday commute hours. And San Francisco transit activists have also erred by not making this issue a priority.

Having just returned from my annual visit to New York City, I again marveled at the city’s subway system. But while negative comparisons with BART are often unfair due to the latter’s later and more costly development, there is no excuse for the Bay Area’s above-ground bus system to be so inadequate.

Although San Francisco loves to pat itself on the back for being a “Transit-First” city, the truth is that neither the city nor the Bay Area has an effective transit system for late evenings and weekends. This fact, more than anything else, explains why car ownership rates continue to rise, and why those attending evening events typically drive rather than use public transit.

As I rode the subway in late evenings and weekends, I tried to figure out why San Francisco transit activists have focused so extensively on reducing parking rather than expanding bus service.

Read More