Mission Bay News & Updates

August 26, 2020

The SFCTA is studying whether congestion pricing could help avoid gridlock when the economy recovers.  The planning agency has identified a large geographic swath that includes Mission Bay in a proposed Congestion Pricing Zone.

Outreach is going on NOW to get community feedback as to whether or not congestion pricing is something San Francisco should pursue, and if so, what the policy would look like.  Questions like:  what would the fees be; would there be any exemptions or reduced fees; and where should revenues go are all being explored.  Results from feedback received will help inform the SFCTA’s final report and recommendations which will be considered by the Board of Supervisors in January, 2021.  We urge you to learn more, get involved, and provide feedback, because if implemented, Mission Bay residents, employees and visitors would be significantly impacted.  Here’s what you can do:

Play Unclog Fog City 
Play a digital game that lets you design your own congestion pricing program.

Watch a Video
Project manager Colin Dentel-Post gives a study overview in this 15-minute video.

Participate in an Upcoming Event
Join SFCTA on September 1st for a workshop with SPUR and the SF Bicycle Coalition.

Complete a survey via text
For English: Text TRAFFIC  to 415-449-4214
For Spanish: Text TRAFICO  to 415-449-4214
For Chinese: Text 交通  to 415-449-4214
For Filipino: Text TRAPIK  to 415-449-4214

Get a Virtual Presentation
Sign up to have our project team present to your community group.

Visit the Study Webpage 
Visit the Downtown Congestion Pricing Study webpage to learn more about the study and sign up to receive email updates.

Share with your Friends
Share these opportunities to get involved on Twitter, Facebook, and LinkedIn.

Contact Us
You can contact the project team at [email protected]

RELEASE DATE: 08/13/2020

The air you breathe while riding BART is filtered more effectively than that in the typical office or indoor setting like a grocery store or pharmacy, with an entire train car’s air being replaced about every 70 seconds.

Because the coronavirus spreads through droplets in the air when a person coughs, sneezes or even just talks, air filtration is key to stopping transmission. Wearing a mask is a first line of protection; BART’s Heating, Ventilation and Air Conditioning (HVAC) system provides another safety layer.

“The BART fleet’s ventilation systems provide passengers with about 4,000 cubic feet per minute of air per car, or about 50 air changes per hour, which is substantial when compared with other public spaces,” said Daniel Cheng, Senior Vehicle Systems Engineer.  “All the air is filtered before entering the passenger area.”

Overall, the air in BART trains at a given moment is about 75% filtered and 25% fresh air drawn from outside the car (it’s 80/20% on legacy trains and 70/30% on Fleet of the Future trains).

For more information on how airflow on BART cars works as well as some of pilots BART is exploring to further enhance safety, visit www.bart.gov

We’ve made a couple of modifications to the Transbay route timetables to improve efficiencies.  The new schedule is available here:  Transbay Timetable, and goes into effect on Monday, Aug 3.

Starting August 23, Muni will make the following service modifications.  These are expected to be the last major changes for a while.    

Aug 25:  Muni Metro (light rail shown in red) is suspended due to technical issues until further notice.  Train service is replaced by buses on these routes.  

• J Church: Surface-only route between Balboa Park and Church & Market
• LK Taraval-Ingleside: Combined, surface-only route, between SF Zoo and Balboa Park. Transfer required to/from downtown at West Portal.
• L Bus Construction Shuttle: Bus substitution between SF Zoo and Sunset Boulevard related to L Taraval Improvement Project construction. Express bus service between Sunset and West Portal.
• N Judah: Full route between Ocean Beach (La Playa) and Embarcadero
• S Shuttle: New subway-only route between West Portal and Embarcadero
• TM Third-Oceanview: Full T Third and M Oceanview routes, combined between West Portal and Embarcadero
• 7 Haight-Noriega: Full route restored between Ortega at 48th Avenue and the Salesforce Transit Center using longer 60-foot buses
• 14 Mission: Line will be served by 60-foot electric trolley coaches instead of motor coaches.
• 12 Pacific Community Shuttle: Modified route extended between Jackson/Van Ness and Sansome/Sutter
• 28 19th Avenue: Weekend service added for modified route between Daly City BART and California/7th Avenue
• 30 Stockton: Route extended to Crissy Field/Mason in the Presidio between 6:00 a.m. and 8:00 p.m. daily. All other times, the 30 Stockton terminal will be Divisadero/Chestnut
• 37 Corbett: Modified route restored between Twin Peaks and Market/Van Ness via Market Street
• 38 Geary: 6:00 a.m. to 9:00 p.m. daily, buses will alternately terminate at Geary Boulevard/32nd Avenue or Fort Miley VA Hospital. All other times, the 38 Geary will terminate at 48th Avenue/Point Lobos. Buses to Fort Miley VA Hospital will layover then continue inbound servicing all existing stops.
• 44 O’Shaughnessy: Full route restored between Hunters Point and California/6th Avenue
• 45 Union-Stockton: Full route restored between Townsend/4th Street and Lyon/Greenwich
• 48 Quintara-24th: Modified route restored between 20th Street/3rd Street and West Portal Station
• 49 Van Ness-Mission: 60-foot buses will replace the 40-foot buses
• 54 Felton: Full route restored between Hunters Point and Daly City BART
• 67 Bernal Heights: Full route restored between Ellsworth/Crescent and 24th Street BART Station
• The following routes will have more frequent service: 8 Bayshore, 9 San Bruno, 9R San Bruno Rapid, 12 Pacific Community Shuttle, 14 Mission, 19 Polk, 22 Fillmore, 24 Divisadero, 25 Treasure Island, 28 19th Avenue, 29 Sunset, 43 Masonic, 44 O’Shaughnessy
• Muni Metro bus substitution during weekend early morning hours (5:00 a.m. to 8:00 a.m.): To align with BART’s weekend station opening schedule, Muni Metro will not operate in the subway until 8:00 a.m. on weekends. Buses will substitute service between approximately 5:00 a.m. to 8:00 a.m. on weekends. Visit our Rail Recovery page to see more details about weekend early morning Metro bus service. Please refer to individual route pages for detailed routing and stop locations.

Normal MB Shuttle service resumed on Monday, June 1

We will continue to have every other row blocked off on the buses to assure riders of 6′ of social distancing; riders are also required to wear masks at all times while on the shuttles

BART has also issued a 15-point plan to help riders feel more confident about riding.  Among them:

1. Riders are required to wear masks at all times in the stations and on the trains
2. BART is misting and wiping down cars with hospital grade disinfectants at the end of every run
3. Touchpoints in stations are cleaned multiple times a day; hand sanitizers are also available in all stations in highly visible locations
4. Longer trains are running all day long to make sure of social distancing with no more than 30 riders per car
5. BART employees have PPE and supplies; testing is also available
6. Riders can look at ridership by date and time of day to help make an informed decision about when to travel at:  www.bart.gov/covid  
7. BART is also looking at flexible seating configurations on new trains to maximize space between riders; new cleaning methods and other new protocols
8. Personal hand straps will be available for $5 which can be washed and re-used.  The hand straps can be purchased at the Lake Merritt Station, by phone (510-464-7136) and soon, online.

Here’s the entire 15-point plan:   BART_COVID_WelcomeBackFactSheet_081820

BART is currently operating from 5AM to 9PM on weekdays.  Riders must be in the system by 8:45PM to be guaranteed a ride to their destination station.

Effective Sept 14, 2020:

BART is increasing service at its busiest AM and PM commute times on 3 lines effective Sept. 14th.  As outlined in its 15 Step Welcome Back Plan, as ridership increases, BART is committed to adding trains to increase frequency and maintain social distancing.  More trains have been added to the Antioch-Millbrae (Yellow); Richmond-Millbrae (Red); and Berryessa-N San Jose-Daly City (Green) lines in key peak times.  Service at these times will be at 15-minute frequencies; it’s at 30-minutes at other weekday times.  The first morning departure times have also been adjusted slightly.  New schedules are available on BART’s Trip Planner and at https://www.bart.gov/schedules/pdf.

Weekend service has also been adjusted to 30-minute frequencies on all lines, and the first trains will start up to 30 minutes earlier.

Please check with ferry service operators regarding scheduled service during the re-opening of the Bay Area.