Commuter Shuttles Program Getting Better and Better

The commuter shuttles program that the Bay Area Council helped develop on behalf of employers just gets better and better. A mid-year progress report the San Francisco Municipal Transportation Authority (SFMTA) released Tuesday (Nov. 15) found that ridership is up while impacts on neighborhoods, streets and air quality continue to decline. Specifically, shuttles are carrying 15 percent more riders while requiring the same number of loading stops. The use of MUNI bus stops is down and most of the shuttle routes have now shifted from small streets to main arterials. Complaints remain stable and 76 percent of shuttles are now using technology that reduce tailpipe emissions.

At the same time, a separate SFMTA study released Tuesday that looked at replacing the successful system the shuttles use to pick up and drop off riders with fewer centralized “hub” locations found the change would be a disaster. A hub system would result in an additional 3,300 cars on already traffic-clogged city streets every day, resulting in an additional 23,000 tons of carbon and 65 million additional vehicle miles travelled every year, and putting commuters and pedestrians at increased risk of traffic accidents. The SFMTA took no action on the “hub” study for now. To engage in the Council’s commuter shuttles work, please contact Vice President Adrian Covert at acovert@bayareacouncil.org.