Supervisor Jake McGoldrick: Geary Bus Rapid Transit

When I was elected in 2000, one of the most vital issues that voters repeatedly asked me to address was to improve public transit on the 38-Geary. This line carries more passengers than any in the City, 55,000 daily and 40,000 on Saturday. The Geary Transit Corridor serves as a regional as well as a local transit route, used by people from Marin and the peninsula.

Unfortunately, no public official nor San Francisco agency had ever placed this vital regional asset into the Regional Transportation Plan (RTP), the blueprint for long range transit planning that is updated every four years by the Metropolitan Transportation Commission (MTC).

Federal and State authorities consult MTC before funding local projects. If Muni seeks funding to improve a local route that also serves the regional system, it is difficult to get funds unless the RTP includes the route in its major investment categories. Our regional partners must agree through the governing board of the MTC that an investment will make travel more efficient and reliable.

When local money is committed to do a Major Investment Study (MIS), the MTC is more likely to place the MIS in the RTP. Thus begins a long process as regional projects compete for scarce dollars.

I am happy to report that given the strong support from transit riders, the Mayor and the Board of Supervisors for improving the Geary Transit Corridor, the MTC agreed to include this vital route in its RTP in 2001 as a Major Investment Study.

Unfortunately, for two years no money materialized. When reauthorization of San Francisco's half cent sales tax came up in 2003, an Expenditure Plan Advisory Committee (EPAC) of interested civic organizations and individuals was formed. The EPAC was created to vet ideas from San Francisco voters and organizations through citywide public meetings.

The Board of Supervisors, Muni, and the SF Transportation Authority also held public meetings. Senior groups, disabled organizations, business and development agencies (such as SPUR and the SF Chamber of Commerce) participated in developing an Expenditure Plan with more than 70 categories of projects. The projects include a new Transbay Terminal, maintaining paratransit service, improving pedestrian safety, and funding studies for Bus Rapid Transit on Geary Boulevard and Van Ness and Potrero avenues.

After extensive public hearings at the Board of Supervisors and in concurrence with the mayor and the Transportation Authority, the half cent sales tax reauthorization and Expenditure Plan were submitted to the voters as Proposition K in 2003. The campaign fully disclosed the uses, categories, and programs to voters through extensive presentations citywide. Campaign literature was extensively disseminated, arguments for and against were printed in the SF Voter Manual and sent to more than 400,000 voters. In a rare show of consensus, Proposition K did not have a single paid argument against it and passed with an overwhelming 75 percent approval.

The following year, with $600,000 from the voter-approved Prop. K Expenditure Plan, the Transportation Authority (TA) sought applicants to serve on the Geary Citizens Advisory Committee (GCAC). The 38 Geary travels through five of our 11 supervisorial districts and serves as a vital citywide "preferential street." Geary CAC membership includes broad participation from the Tenderloin, Japantown and the Richmond.

The response to serve was overwhelmingly positive with four times as many applicants as seats. The GCAC has held public meetings regularly with the Transportation Authority to guide the public discussion and debate the pros and cons of various proposals. A first set of public workshops was held last summer and a second set of workshops was held in December.

Hundreds of participants attended the four workshops in December. They offered ideas that will continue to be aired and discussed as we move forward. Some participants involved in this process have been misinformed to believe that a rail line will soon be built down the middle of Geary. Nothing could be further from the truth.

Bus Rapid Transit (BRT) is a much cheaper and more efficient system of improvements that has been developed in cities around the world for the last 20 years. BRT can be implemented with minimal disruption and minimal investment to maximize reliable service. Only about $150 million is available over the next 5-7 years to invest on Geary. A rail line would cost about $2 billion. Thus, we must make improvements with the money we have, not the money we wish we had.

To learn more, e-mail Julie.Kirschbaum@sfcta.org. Happy New Year.

Jake McGoldrick represents District 1.