Editor,
Thank you for your excellent newspaper! I pick it up every month at The Good Life Grocery on 20th Street or at the Potrero Hill Library when I come, as I often do, to be with my family, including grandchildren, who live on the Hill!
Please keep publishing the View!
Susan Lucas
Inner Sunset
Editor,
Given that the September article by J. Eric Miller, “Better Bus Service, Fewer Parking Spots Coming to Potrero Hill,” focuses much more heavily on the latter — the repurposing of a handful of hundreds of on-street parking spots — I’d like to express my enthusiasm for the potential benefits that this change provides transit riders. The rerouted 55-Dogpatch will provide a direct connection for more riders on Potrero Hill, in Dogpatch, and from the Mission to the commercial district on 20th Street and to the 22nd Street Caltrain station, in addition to the existing connections to 18th Street, Third Street and the T-line. Further, I’d suggest that the push to move pull-in stops to flag stops would make riding Muni more difficult for anyone carrying cargo – such as groceries – families with strollers, and those who rely on mobility devices, such as a walker or wheelchair; navigating through parked cars to board the bus is an unnecessary hassle and slows down bus service and any car traffic that gets stuck waiting for it.
Miller quotes representatives from several businesses lamenting the parking situation, including The Good Life Grocery. The article doesn’t indicate whether the businesses have surveyed their customers, but evidence from elsewhere indicates that small businesses typically thrive on corridors when transit service improves. Regardless, parking needs would be better met by advocating for a loading zone and/or a handful of metered spots to ensure that the business can receive deliveries and that there’ll be spots available for customers who need them, rather than fighting bus improvements.
“Efforts Continue to Improve Mission Bay Mobility in the Face of New Demands” by Bettina Cohen in the View’s August issue gives a more balanced look, pointing out how many people the various transit improvements will help move. This article also notes that while the 55-Dogpatch will repurpose 20 existing parking spots the rerouting of the 22 will restore some number; there may not even be a net loss.
The San Francisco Municipal Transportation Agency estimates that public transit is responsible for about a quarter of all trips made in the City, a similar proportion to solo driving. Our curb space tells a much different story, with the vast majority dedicated to storing cars. It’d be great if a View reporter could seek out transit riders who stand to benefit from these improvements for your next story; it’s not hard to find people waiting for the next Muni bus to show up.
Cliff Bargar
Connecticut Street
