BATWG’s Program for 2017

January 2017January 2019 admin 2017, Regional and Local Governments, Roadways and Traffic, Transit Systems

1.) Oakland – Become more involved in rail and highway freight movement. Continue to focus on Oakland’s lack of traffic signal synchronization, Oakland’s highly deficient street rebuilding program and Oakland’s costly and often counterproductive street “improvement” programs. Identify one-way streets that could be returned to two-way traffic. (All)

2.) San Francisco – Support SaveMuni in its attempts to accelerate the construction of the downtown Caltrain extension. Continue to oppose ill-conceived and wasteful pet projects. Continue to advocate for improved public transit in San Francisco. (Cauthen/Feinbaum)

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SF Mayor’s Railyards Study Sidetracks DTX

April 2016May 2018 admin 2016, Transit Systems DTX,

California Rail News Publishes Article by BATWG Member Jerry Cauthen discusses DTX extension. Read the full article, SF Mayor’s Railyards Study Sidetracks DTX.

DTX Coalition Blasts City Hall’s Rail Yards Study

February 2016May 2018 admin 2016, Transit Systems RAB,

On Tuesday, February 23, 2016, San Franciscans received their first look at City Hall’s heretofore secret RailYards Alternatives/I280 Boulevard Study (RAB). The revelations were eight months late in coming and yet still contained no engineering analysis, no traffic congestion figures and no cost estimates. In fact the presentation was limited to the same set of fanciful Mission Bay rearrangements that were floated by the Lee Administration early last year.

What was presented at the Potrero Hill Recreation Center last week was billed as concluding the first of a five-phase planning process that is expected to take at least “7 to 10 years”.

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San Francisco’s City Hall Impedes Caltrain Extension

November 2015May 2018 admin 2015, Transit Systems DTX,

Under the Lee Administration transportation in San Francisco is heading toward a cliff.

For starters City Hall is neglecting, if not actively undermining, the downtown extension of Caltrain (DTX), a project that would connect Caltrain to 6 Muni rail lines, 4 BART lines and over 40 bus lines at one spacious location in the middle of San Francisco’s 340,000 person employment center. Continue reading →

Santa Clara Has a Long Way to Go

July 2015May 2018 admin 2015, Transit Systems

The Santa Clara Valley Transportation Authority’s (VTA’s) 81 mile long, light rail system is widely regarded as the most ill-conceived in the entire country. According to the National Transit Database, in 2013 the VTA’s 56 light rail cars carried just slightly over 35,000 riders a day. The reasons for this exceptionally low ridership are not hard to find.

First, much of the area traversed is low-density sprawl, incapable of generating enough ridership to justify the high cost of passenger rail service. To the South the density ranges from low-density, single family to miles of empty land bereft of virtually any potential riders. To the north the rail system meanders its way through Silicon Valley, passing sprawled out hi-tech “campuses”, each surrounded by acres of beautifully-landscaped free parking.

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City Hall Undermines DTX, SF’s Most Significant Transportation Improvement In 50 Years

July 2015May 2018 admin 2015, Transit Systems DTX,

CityHallUnderminesDTX Under the Lee Administration transportation in San Francisco is heading toward a cliff. For starters City Hall is neglecting, if not actively impeding, the downtown extension of Caltrain (DTX), a project that would connect Caltrain to 6 Muni rail lines, 4 BART lines and over 40 bus lines at one spacious location in the middle of San Francisco’s 340,000 person employment center.