The N-Judah Chronicles

We live in a society of folks who don't like rules. Well, more correctly they like rules for everyone else but they sure as heck don't like rules for them. For that reason, we have MUNI Street Theater.

The other day we had a special PSA provided by our players: "Why You Shouldn't Eat or Drink on MUNI." The show was short and to the point, just like those sugary little bits of wisdom on TV, and similarly, made a point that only the terminally clueless wouldn't get.

After having lunch at Zazie in Cole Valley, I got on the N to go back to the Sunset, and a guy rushed on with the tallest coffee one can buy.

Without a lid.

And, like a horror movie where one sees Victim #2 about to open the door where the murderer is hiding, I wanted to shout advice to the cast member, but realized it'd be futile. Sure, one should not eat or drink on MUNI and in this case it was a matter of practicality - given the sudden stops the N has to make, it was likely that at some point Our Zero Hero was going to be wearing his coffee. However, I also realized that in our Era of No Rules, saying so would be pointless.

Instead, I just moved back a few rows to get a good view and avoid a RHPS-like participation in the PSA. Every stop the MUNI train made, was one more chance to see this guy splatter all over, and each time the tension built....would he make it to his destination sans hot coffee on his hipster hoodie? The tension began to build.

Finally, after we passed 9th Avenue, the N had to make a quick stop to avoid hitting a wayward motorist. Everyone made a quick lurch. And in a moment, Hipster Hoodie Coffee Guy was covered in lukewarm liquid.

Cue sugary PSA tagline with Mariska Hargitay: "MUNI Rules About Drinks: They're There, Because We Care."

The payoff to this mini PSA wasn't as great as I had hoped (the splash was funny, but not as truly spectacular as it could have been), and, because of the lack of fellow audience members (most of them got off at 9th and Irving) taking a picture discreetly wasn't an option.

Lesson learned? Flouting the rules make make one feel rebellious and "cool" - but there's a reason why they created them in the first place! Hopefully Hipster Hoodie Coffee Guy figured that out.

Posted by Greg Dewar at 12:10 PM | Permalink | Comments (1)

Reading the paper this morning, articles in the Chronicle and the Examiner told of a simply fascinating idea - paying MUNI employees "bonus" money for simply coming to work - like they're already supposed to. (Why can't any of us get deals like that, eh?)

Once again, MUNI logic and Real World Logic collide. Given that members of Local 250A are already the highest paid drivers in the area, I don't quite understand why it is we need to pay these guys another bonus simply for doing what they're supposed to be doing - showing up to work every day. Plus the $350 "bonus" doesn't seem like much of an incentive if workers can take extended leaves of absence - and get paid!

I am still working on talking to Supervisor Peskin directly about his recent proposed charter amendment for the fall ballot that would address some MUNI issues. In the meantime, do you think paying MUNI employees a "bonus" to show up to work, and perhaps reduce the rampant absenteeism causing some of the delays on the N, the J, the T, et al is a good idea? Let people know in the comments today!

Posted by Greg Dewar at 10:49 AM | Permalink | Comments (7)

What isn't happening today? I mean, really!

Surely by now you've been forewarned that our well-mannered, kind, and respectful friends of mass transit, Critical Mass, will be having their monthly cookie scream today, right when you're trying to leave work and enjoy your weekend. Patron Saint of Truth, Dan Noyes had an interesting story in the run up to today's festival of rage.

But wait! That's not all! Downtown San Francisco will also be invaded by Zombies at 6pm, also. Oddly enough, the rabid undead that live on human brains have a code of conduct that's actually better than that of the rabid bike riders. Fascinating. If they're looking for brains, however, a fight with Critical Mass may not be such a great idea.

But wait! It's also Towel Day, in honor of the late scifi humor author Douglas Adams. No word on if legions of wannabe Hitchhikers will be awaiting Vogon ships in downtown, but this is San Francisco (which Douglas Adams described in one of his books as "people starting a new religion is just their way of saying hi").

It seems like it was just yesterday I was out taking random photos on a crazy Friday. And just like that day, Park Life Store will be having an opening reception at their store/gallery on Clement Street.

There is plenty of fun for everyone today, and this weekend. I've been trying out Upcoming's website to find events, along with those dependable sites FunCheap SF and My Open Bar as well. Happy Commuting!

UPDATE:Ok, one thing that wasn't happening today - MUNI running properly in the tunnel! I got on an inbound train at Van Ness, only to get the whole "we're moving really slowly through the tunnel, take a surface bus instead" announcement. Thanks to MUNI I was late to another appointment. Thanks, MUNI.

UPDATE 2: Here's a few photos, belatedly posted on Flickr!

Posted by Greg Dewar at 11:29 AM | Permalink | Comments (3)

These days, given the N's foibles, I've been "cheating" on my beloved N and taking the 6-Parnassus when it's convenient. Yeah, I know, but I can't wait for MUNI to figure out how to fix the trains and wait decades to get home during rush hour.

Anyway, today whilst taking the 6, when the bus approached the intersection of Haight and Masonic (always a scene and not in a good way) , it turned out we were arriving as the SFFD and SFPD were cleaning up an accident involving a scooter that was leaking gasoline. In other words, there was going to be a delay.

The bus driver took pains to ask the police involved how long it would be before the accident would be cleared up so she could make the left on to Masonic, and assured passengers that she was doing what she could to get us past said accident. She was professional with both cops and riders and reminded us she couldn't just let us out on a busy street on Haight since there'd be a serious risk of someone getting hit by the 71 or the cars.

Now, this is when some of our fellow citizens on the bus chose to act like a bunch of snotty hipster bitches, and started shouting nonsense at the driver, demanding to be let off the bus immediately. Even after several of us told them to pipe down because the driver was on the case, they kept on acting like jerks. The driver made a good point, saying that the injured scooter guy probably didn't plan on getting in a serious accident during rush hour, and that a little patience while the poor guy was carried out on a stretcher was in order.

Within minutes, we were on our way. Hipster bitches got off the bus. I said a special thank you to the driver when I departed, and thought "Hey, why not post at least some positive news for a change."

It's times like these I wish the MUNI driver's union would do more for the driver of bus 5421 on the 6 Parnassus who was trying to help passengers, instead of defend the top 25 jerks who cause all the problems. Seriously.

Posted by Greg Dewar at 9:11 PM | Permalink | Comments (7)

Several Loyal Readers have written in asking why it is I have not discussed Supervisor Aaron Peskin's proposed charter amendment to "fix" MUNI, which has been in the papers the last few days. Good question!

The answer is this - while I have read the same press coverage everyone else has, I don't like the idea of immediately jumping up and responding to every single piece of news without finding out for myself what's really going on. It's quite easy for politicians or bureaucrats to announce something and rattle off a list of Things That Make Us Feel Good, but in the devilish details, we the riders get screwed once again. Hey, remember how they kept promising having the N go to Embarcadero would speed things up?

Rather than just do the usual blogging-shmo thing and react, I'm going to try and see if Supervisor Peskin will deign to talk to a lowly citizen blogger, and do a little digging instead, and see what I find out. In the meantime, if you see something on MUNI or have ideas for subjects that could use a bit more of a once over than a regular blog post, feel free to send them in!

Special Note:If you haven't already done so, fill out the Reader Survey so we can fine tune this site to better suit the needs of MUNI riders everywhere! Thanks to all who have filled it out so far!

Posted by Greg Dewar at 11:04 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)

The one time I didn't compose a posting offline, complete with links and whatnots, and that's the one time my ISP decides to pull a MUNI and crap out on me. I cannot communicate just how frustrating this is. Lesson learned - never compose a complex posting online, and follow the rules one sets out for themselves, in this case don't compose online.

I'll reconstruct it and repost it later on. Meanwhile, I will regale you all with an incident that happened after the infamous Bay To Breakers event yesterday, which according to our friends at SFist had some issues Sunday.

So, there I was minding my own business, heading out from the Duboce Park Cafe towards downtown. As you all may or may not have been aware, MUNI was in overdrive (sort of) providing extra trains and buses and 7 dollar fun rides for all those people after the big race.

Anyway, so as I wait for my N to show up, one pulls up and it is packed, sardine-style, with happy people from all over the city. What I did not count on, however, was seeing the N used as a recycling truck. Yes, that's right. You see, two enterprising individuals took it upon themselves to collect nine huge garbage bags worth of plastic water bottles in hopes of getting the CRV for each. So, intelligently, they chose to take an N on the most packed day of the season.

Yeah. That was my reaction too.

Oh, but it gets better. You see, as I watched these two Rhodes Scholars try to get all of these huge bags off the super-crowded N-Judah, I noticed that one bag was starting to snag on the handrail by the exit. Before I could say "Stop, kind gentlemen, you're about to spill f*cking bottles all over the place," it tore open. Suddenly the stop, the train floor and the sidewalk were covered in stupid water bottles. Of course this delayed things even more.

Finally, I managed to get on the train, while everyone else was trying to kick water bottles out the door. The Genius Duo decided to snap every one of them up, and had no problem reaching under the about to start moving train to grab every last one of them. News flash, geniuses - you can still redeem the bottles if they are flat. You cannot, however, get a new hand if your existing one gets chopped off, at the recyclers.

I was glad to get off the train when I did and go about the rest of my day. I did leave MUNI wondering a few things - one was why it is they can have enough trains to run for BTB, but not for the daily commute. The other was how much it costs MUNI to service all these big special events - and how it is that MUNI riders are the ones that end up shouldering the costs for these things (in both actual costs and lost service) and not those who created the added burden in the first place?

Posted by Greg Dewar at 3:01 PM | Permalink | Comments (8)

Today, I thought we'd take a break from all our MUNI worries and ask for your particpation in a survey of you, the Loyal Readers, to better refine the site as we approach our anniversary. The survey is powered by the Blog Reader Project, which is from the same people who produce Blogads.com, which appear on this site (or will starting next week!)

You can take the survey without worrying your personal identifying information is ending up in a telemarketing database in Bangalore, or an ID theft ring in God Knows Where. Also, I will know that people are taking the survey, but I will not know your specific names and email addresses unless you want to tell that to me. I tested it out and it's safe - anytime there's a question you don't like, just skip it.

Although some other blogs are publicizing select portions of the results, the only person that will be looking at the results of the survey will be myself, as I try to determine what changes would make the site better and meet the needs of Loyal Readers new and old. Some data may be used in aggregate for "big picture" analysis by the BRP, but again, your personal information is never shared with them.

Click on this link to take the survey today and I'll do my best to help make the site better, faster, stronger, bionic, etc. Thanks!

Posted by Greg Dewar at 5:05 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Whilst perusing the likes of SFist.com I found this recent post announcing a so-called Town Hall Meeting with MUNI Director Nate Ford. The devil, as they say, is in the details - apparently the people at Rescue MUNI have indicated this meeting came about only because of a petition by commuters from the Peninsula upset with the Caltrain to MUNI.

Devilish detail #1 - if you live in San Francisco, you get squat. If you live elsewhere, someone listens. WTF? Devilish detail #2 - the "where" and "when" - in this case at noon at a conference room on the second floor of the Ferry Building. Nothing indicates an easy to attend meeting like one held somewhere hidden in the Ferry Building at noontime.

But devilish detail #3 - the biggie - is this really a "meeting" or one of those self-serving "lectures" like the ones the Mayor's been holding around town? I really hope it is the former, and not the latter.

Supervisor Mirkarimi's event last fall at least tried to hold MUNI leaders accountable and has been used to hold them to promises (often broken).

More importantly, questions not answered in person were done in writing afterwards. And, the meeting wasn't allowed to devolve into techno-talk - the real-world concerns such those brought up by Loyal Readers were kept at the forefront. It's hard to know for sure, at this point, and while I'm hopeful it'll produce something concrete, it's all too easy for bureau-bots and status quo defenders to turn a public meeting into a PR stunt.

I am not sure I can attend this one myself, but I am definitely going to try - if any of you are interested, you should attend, and post your thoughts in the comments section afterwards! This kind of meeting is not a cure-all, but it's something for now, and why not take advantage of the chance if you can?

NOTE: A Loyal Reader (who'd rather not use his or her name online) made a suggestion that people stop by the Mayor's Neighborhood Lecture in West Portal to try and ask a few questions , but since the topic is officially "public works" I don't know that would be particularly helpful. If you go, let us know what happened!

Posted by Greg Dewar at 4:23 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Hopefully both Loyal Readers and New Readers saw today's front page article in the Examiner today. Aside from the fact that Rockin' Reporter Alex Rocha managed to talk to a certain local blogger, what's more important is that MUNI is clearly feeling some heat to do something, anything, if not to totally repair the system, to at least make people feel better. Maybe doing this blog and publishing our comments isn't futile after all? Hmm.

Fine. Here's the thing. We can always talk about "common sense" solutions as citizens and users of MUNI, but the fact is, we're not privy to the endless amounts of data, engineering, and whatnot that makes up running a mass transit system for a major US city. The good citizens on the MUNI Citizen's Advisory Council deserve a lighter lit because they rock and a big thanks because they must possess the patience of Job to put in the (unpaid) hours to try and wrest some answers from MUNI. That said, when I read this whole "all options on the table" rhetoric, my DNFW antennae are raised.

Why?

Simple. We get the rhetoric of how they're trying to "help" and sure, possibly, not having the N have to bottleneck at the overworked Embarcadero station should help, but does that mean that instead we'd just push the problem to the Caltrain station?

More to the point, Nate Ford, Ken McDonald and MUNI management have done a great job pointing out inherent systemic flaws in MUNI they've inherited that include inflexible workplace rules imposed by a Who-Gives-A-Frak Union, and systemic funding problems. OK, so how the heck do you overcome Said Frakked Up Stuff with a reshuffling of the MUNI cars that clearly aren't enough to service both the KLM and N lines and the new T?

The Mayor has proposed pie in the sky feel-good chatter about "free" MUNI to placate opponents, while at the same time being a realist and alluding to big fare increases and big cuts as part of a "get tough on MUNI" posture to help himself.

Meanwhile, allegedly Communist Supervisors are daring to take on the political sacred cow known as a public employee union in the hopes of making MUNI more efficient with our tax and fare dollars. (Remember how Nate and Ken kept talking about how said inefficient rules and whatnots keep all those malcontent drivers and bad biz practices from making MUNI efficient?)

Break it down easier: you can't reshuffle the deck and expect to play the game if you don't have enough cards in the first place. MUNI? Media? Mayor? Board? Are you listening?

We want our MUNI to do what it did for decades sans BS - work for US not the few. We know it can be done. Surely if Curitiba, Brazil can do it, the"City That Knows How" can too?

Or have we just become the "City That Knows How To Whine, Obfuscate, Hide Behind Political BS, Let Morons Run the Show, and Let Down the Citizens of Our Fair City?"

Your thoughts?

Posted by Greg Dewar at 6:21 PM | Permalink | Comments (6)

So, if you were at a MUNI bus shelter recently, and wanted to see when the next MUNI bus was going to arrive, in many places (if not all), you got a lengthy notice about the proposed bus shelters, which will be on display at City Hall on May 10th and 11th. Now, who can resist such a field trip, right? Count me in!

But, as always, there's another lesson to be learned here - how you can have an army of paid professionals at City Hall to "communicate" who can't. I mean, putting this lengthy message on NextMuni is goofy enough - but when you realize that at stops there's only two lines of text to display, well couldn't someone have, oh I don't know, written this a little tighter?

Then there's the info on the City's website, which refers you to the MTA's site for more "information" - only to repeat everything word for word you've already read. Weird.

Just another day at MUNI, I guess!

UPDATE (5/10): I posted some quick photos on Flickr. Flickr Uploadr was being rather uppity this evening...

Posted by Greg Dewar at 4:09 PM | Permalink | Comments (7)

Our once-Mighty N is being reduced to a bad joke, shared by those who rely on it for their commute, their livelihood, or just about any reason one might need to get from Point A to Point B. MUNI management offers double-talk at best, and, more often, outright lies. This has to stop!

Today we feature two letters from Loyal Readers, one from Eve Batey, an editor at the San Francisco Chronicle, and another reader who had similar problems with the N recently. We thank both for their comments and concerns!

Dear Mr Ford-

Eve Batey, here. You might remember me from the interview I did with you for SFist.com this time last year. Now I'm an editor at the San Francisco Chronicle, and Matt Baume has taken over the Muni beat for SFist.

I'm writing to you over my concern with the N Judah, which seems to be more and more frequently ending its run at 19th Avenue. Over the course of this past week, I have been on 5 (five) N Judahs that have reached this premature conclusion without warning -- most recently
tonight, when the N I was on at 12:30 or so ejected its passengers, with the driver informing us that another train would be there to pick us up in "2 or 3 minutes."

Each of the five times this week that the N Judah has ended its run at 19th Avenue, I have walked all the way home to my apartment at 43rd and Irving without seeing another outbound N, putting to lie any "2 or 3 minutes" assertion an N driver might make. Tonight was no exception. While the other abortive rides this week were earlier in the evening -- 8 or 9 PM -- having to walk home after midnight was a whole new low for me. Mr Ford, there aren't a lot of cabs in the Sunset. One's options are to wait for an N, or to walk. Imagine the women you know, family or close friends. Would you want them walking home, alone, at 12:30 at night? So why is that acceptable for any of the passengers of the transit organization you oversee?

For that matter, why is any unannounced, premature conclusion to a line acceptable? Every night this week I have paid full fare to ride the N Judah home, and every night I have walked from 19th to 43rd. Can you imagine paying for an incomplete product or service, and being happy about it? Again, I ask you, then why is this service acceptable for the organization you oversee?

While I cannot speak for every other rider of Muni, I will say this -- at this point, all we ask for is a little candor. If Muni cannot adequately serve the Sunset, please tell the residents of this neighborhood so, so that we can make alternative plans to get around the city. If Muni intentionally chooses not to ensure reliable service to this neighborhood (and what else must we think when our drivers inform us "it's not me, dispatch just called me back in" as my driver did on Wednesday night), please let us know. But I cannot -- I will not -- continue to support a transit organization that not only fails to deliver on the fare I pay, but actively puts riders in peril by dumping them on the street in the middle of the night.

I apologize in advance if I sound strident, or shrill. But I work hard, Mr Ford, and I want to make it home in a timely and safe fashion. I understand that accidents and unexpected issues arise --
but that's not what we're talking about in this case. We're talking about trains that have "Ocean Beach" as their destination on them when one gets on them at Powell, and drivers that suddenly announce that we need to disembark when we arrive at 19th. That is no accident.

All I am asking is that if Muni cannot do its best to be that timely and safe mode of transport to the Outer Sunset, that you sack up and admit it. That's the least you can do.

Best,

Eve Batey
CC: Supervisor Ed Jew
CC: The N Judah Chronicles

Editor's Note: Ms. Batey reports that Supervisor Ed Jew, who was CC'd on this note, actaully contacted her today regarding her concerns!

Reader "Muha The Frog" writes:

I've been subscribed to the N-Judah Chronicles for a little while now, and I guessed it's time to share my tales of N-Woe.

Yesterday, at about 4:00, when the N-Judah supposedly runs every 8 minutes, I was at the N-Judah outbound stop at 19th avenue. I was headed to a pet shop on 31st. I called my "trusty" 511 Arrival Times phone, which told me that there would be trains in 14 and 16 minutes (they like being bunched up).

I decided to start walking to 31st avenue. On the way, I saw the strangest thing--a bus was running on the N-Judah Tracks. This bus was completely full. Furthermore, it had no sign to tell anyone what bus it was. upon approaching the bus, I heard it say multiple times, "N-Judah. To Duboce and Church." Is this supposed to be some kind of joke? Is Muni going to replace our Light Rail Lines with buses now?

I finally reached my pet shop by walking, without the "14 minutes" train in sight. Talking to the employees, many of whom take the N-Judah, I discovered that their tales were even worse. One man often has to WALK from 31st to 9th without a single N passing him.

On the way back, I called my "Trusty" 511 phone, which told me that a train was coming in 1 minute. It was actually closer to 5 minutes, but at least it came at all.

Gee, N service beyond 19th avenue is becoming worse and worse...

As an aside, when I brought up these concerns to Ken McDonald, the COO of MUNI at a meeting of the Citizen's Advisory Council for MUNI, all I got was an icy stare. The guy literally could not even say "I am sorry to hear that" or some sort of acknowledgment that this isn't an abstract - these screw ups are causing real life problems for taxpaying, law-abiding citizens of Our City.

Maybe we need to elect the board of the MTA directly, instead of hoping the Mayor at the time of the appointments has his or her head in the game to appoint people that are tough enough to force some changes. There's an old saying that the definition of insanity is doing the same thing over and over again, and expecting different results. Years of do-nothing, don't-care, not-my-job, lazy-employee nonsense got us into this mess. What is to suggest that more of the same will get us out?

Posted by Greg Dewar at 1:33 PM | Permalink | Comments (4)

After all the drama we've been having on the N-Judah (and MUNI in general) I thought it might be time to lighten the mood a little bit and highlight a few random events and things this weekend.

Aside from the alcohol-fest that is "Cinco De Mayo" (which you can safely engage in if you ride MUNI this weekend), it's also Free Comic Book Day at participating retailers around town. You can use this handy locator to find the retailer nearest you -- I'll be heading to Amazing Fantasy on Irving and 8th, and my all-time favorite, Comix Experience on Divisadero, both easily accessible by the N-Judah.

On an unrelated note, I'm curious to know what (if any) social networking sites readers use. I am considering some changes to the site as we approach the anniversary, and would like to hear if any of you use Upcoming, Flickr, the much-dreaded MySpace, VOX.com, Ning, Consumating.com (a site I recently ditched) or any others. There are some new things I'd like to try out here, but I want to get a sense of what would be of use and what would not. Post your responses in the comment section below!

This weekend should have some nice weather, so get outside, take some pictures, ride the N-line and hope that it works for a change this weekend...if I take any interesting photos, I'll be posting them to my Flickr site this weekend!

PS: Feel free to continue posting CC's of complaint letters to our Save the N-Judah entry this weekend too!

Posted by Greg Dewar at 4:05 PM | Permalink | Comments (1)

Reader Paula J. from the Sunset writes:

Hi Greg,

I recently (in December) moved to the Sunset (48th and Judah) and have been taking the N Judah to Civic Center where I work. (I've lived in SF for 19 years, but have never lived out here).

Anyway, when the T line caused the N Judah to meltdown, I was dumped off in various locations (along with everyone else) and at all hours of the cold nights. I kept seeing this one older person who seemed very sickly. Through this experience as well as through my work which focuses on the food system, I realized that the N Judah is literally a lifeline for the poor.

Several years ago, my organization and others conducted a large scale food system assessment. Through this assessment, I realized that the Sunset had the fewer food resources that most other neighborhoods, especially for the poor including congregate feeding programs (like Glide and St. Anthonys), food pantries, summer lunch sites, etc. Many of our neighborhood's poor residents must take the N Judah to get services including food.

I attend the Board of Supervisors' Food Security Task Force, and have been emphasizing the lack of food resources in the Sunset, especially for the elderly, children and the poor. Without the N Judah, I'm convinced that a significant number of people go hungry.

I really enjoy the N Judah Chronicles, and would be happy to talk more about this.

Thanks!

Paula Jones

PS: Find the Food System Assessment here -- check out the maps on page 42 and 48

Also, the Food Bank has a good neighborhood assessment, and the Sunset has over 13,000 people at risk of being hungry, yet we have only 6 pantries for the entire neighborhood.

Reader Paula makes a point that often gets lost in "transit policy discussions", especially when the bureau-bots and political types get involved. It's quite easy to forget in the reams of statistics, studies, meetings, and whatnots, that public transit is not just some lofty concept - it's something people rely on for their daily lives. And endless "talk" does not get the job done - doing something does.

When we all start tolerating, even expecting mediocrity, failure, and incompetence from the well-paid people downtown who are allegedly working for our benefit, it's not just commuters to good downtown jobs that lose. Everybody loses, and it's those who don't have blogs, or well-paid megaphones who lose out the most.

Mr. Ford? Mr. Newsom? MTA Folk? Are you listening? Do you even care? Or are you all paid well enough not to?

Maybe we oughta put them all on a foodbank challenge like the one Gov. Kulongoski took in Oregon.

Then maybe they'd get the N-Judah back online again!

Posted by Greg Dewar at 3:39 PM | Permalink | Comments (2)