Supervisor Carmen Chu: Muni Switchbacks Bad

Public Hearing Called on Practice of Muni Switchbacks
I have called for a public hearing on the MTA's practice of switching back Muni light rail vehicles (LRVs), like the N-Judah or L-Taraval, at the City Operations and Neighborhood Services Committee of the SF Board of Supervisors.

Recently, a number of residents have called our office to report the early termination of the Muni lines before they reach their advertised final stop. The MTA has argued that the switchbacks are operationally necessary to reduce further delays in the system heading in the opposite direction.

However, not only has this practice resulted in a significant inconvenience for the many Muni riders who must exit early and wait for the next train, but also further erodes the public's confidence in the public transportation system's reliability. Additionally, part of the frustration residents have expressed was the lack of advance notification of the MTA's plans to shorten the route of these lines.

I have asked the MTA to address these concerns and provide options for reducing the prevalence of early switchbacks. To start, the MTA has already committed to implementing immediate changes in its notification procedures for riders. These include ensuring vehicle destination signs displaying the correct final destination and includes operator announcements along the route to advise riders of both the final destination and the location of the next trailing vehicle.

So far, the MTA has committed to not switchback vehicles unless there is a following train within five minutes of the train being turned around. It is our goal, however, to find alternatives that will remove the need for short-turning vehicles.

The public hearing is scheduled to take place on Jan. 10 (Monday), at 10:30 a.m., at City Hall (Room 250, Board Chamber). Members of the public are encouraged to attend the hearing. Transit riders are also encouraged to record the four-digit vehicle number located at the front of the train, date and time if trains do not properly display their final destination, if no announcements are made, or if no train arrives within five minutes of a switchback. You can either report this information to 3-1-1 or our office at (415) 554-7460 or chustaff@sfgov.org.

District 4 Community Needs Assessment
The Department of Children Youth and Families (DCYF) wants to hear from parents and community members in District 4 for its Community Needs Assessment (CNA).

The CNA is conducted every three years, marking the beginning of a three-year grant cycle, and helps DCYF prioritize and plan for the coming years. The CNA includes a review of city-wide program and administrative data as well as the fielding of community, parent, youth and service provider feedback.

It is important that DCYF hear from a broad sample of families in our district, so they understand the need for programs, funding and other services in the Sunset.

Please come to a meeting hosted by our office and the Sunset District Neighborhood Coalition on Thursday, Jan. 13, at 7 p.m. Representatives from DCYF will give a brief introduction about the CNA and the work this department does, a survey and discussion of district needs, and some Q & A. The facilitation is being conducted by consultants at Harder & Co. Community Research, and DCYF staff will be available for further questions.

The Sunset needs programming, funding and services for families; let's make sure that DCYF is aware of the needs of our district!

After the meeting, the Sunset District Neighborhood Coalition invites you to stay to meet City Tax Assessor Phil Ting.

For more information, please contact our office at (415) 554-7460 or the Sunset District Neighborhood Coalition at (415) 665-5579.

San Francisco Supervisor Carmen Chu represents District 4.