New Parking Policy at Coit Tower - DPT Doesn't Enforce It

Coit Tower, it's a historical landmark that represents our proud city, has gorgeous views of the Bay, and the famous wild parrots in the trees.

But as a result of the popularity and we are currently in the peak of tourist season, Coit Tower is known for a heck of lot of headaches. Parking is next to impossible during daytime hours, many drivers decide to park in illegal spots, and traffic along the only road (Telegraph) can be pretty congested. Idiots like the SUV driver below, doesn't mind driving over a pile of wood chips the city placed there.

Just yesterday, the SFMTA's press office published a news release to start their second year of the summer pilot program where only neighborhood residents are permitted to park at Coit Tower's parking lot during weekends (using a special permit). The SFMTA is encouraging all tourists and visitors to take Muni's 39-Coit line to the landmark.

The goal is to prevent the heavy congestion on Telegraph which results in major delays of up to 15-20 minutes for the 39-Coit bus and the carbon emissions from cars idling and driving in circles around the parking lot.

Good idea, help the NIMBYs out by giving them some parking access. But that's not my concern, it's trying to even enforce the parking policy in the first place.

• Last summer, I visited Coit Tower at least three times on the weekends and always took Muni to get there. Two of the three occasions, I was stuck on the Muni bus for 20 minutes because of the traffic to the parking lot.
• The DPT parking officers were NEVER there when I visited the area.
• During occasions when I arrived to Coit Tower, I'd see cars blanketed with parking tickets for failure to have the neighborhood parking permit, but the DPT officer never sticks around to help keep traffic flowing and boot out those double parked in the circle.
• I even called DPT enforcement to ask them why they are not enforcing policy, arguing the Muni buses are running 20 minutes late because of traffic. The asshole hung-up on me.
  

If the SFMTA wants to be serious about keeping traffic flowing around the area and keep the 39-Coit bus running on-time, get a parking officer up there during day hours on the weekends for the rest of the summer. Handing out pamphlets, informing the Visitor's Bureau, and spreading the word on your website won't prevent tourists (who can't read a sign in red letters) from violating the rules.

Tourists in San Francisco: Why don't you move to the back of the F-Market?

Here's an itching question that needs an answer:
Is there a reason why tourists hate standing in the back of the F-Market historic streetcars?

I was riding the F-Market today from the platform near Embarcadero station to Pier 39, and when the orange colored Milan car approached, I thought it was crowded. But once I got in, I moved all the way to the back of the car that there was so much room, I could literally lay down on the floor and not even kick someone. During the entire ride, the sardine packed mob that conquered the first 3/4 of the cab and never even moved towards the rear.

Even worse, I was watching people at the boarding platforms frustrated like hell that the trolley skipped them, and seeing me, the only guy with plenty of room in the rear.

Yet... while it is a frequent problem with the tourists, it occasionally happens on the regular Muni routes too. I'd say "excuse me" and "pardon me" to get through the swarm, and there's plenty of comfy room to stand in the rear of the bus!

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Here's my take to the problem:

I think people always believe the back of the bus is always full of the "bad" people and usually the easiest sign is the graffiti and glass etching on the rear windows and on the walls. Typically, nothing ever happens or goes wrong as people go on their merry way home.

But here's the strange part: the F-Market is relatively clean and always safe. I've never seen any graffiti or destruction to the Milan cars, but the PCCs sometimes have a little graffiti, but not much (maybe because of the knee-banging legroom of the seats close proximity).

So what are the tourists afraid of by not scooting themselves to the back of the F-Market? Would you enjoy having the trolley skip you because tourists can't understand a damn request by the driver to shove your butt to the back?

On several occasions, I even yelled out to people to move to the back of the train, but does anyone even listen? HELL NO. Maybe I should buy a cattle prod.

Back from Mexico on the Star Princess, what Swine Flu? More cruise ships to visit San Francisco SOON

Just yesterday, I disembarked from the Star Princess cruise ship at Pier 35 in San Francisco. I was aboard a ten day Mexican Riviera cruise with stops at Acapulco, Manzanillo, Puerto Vallara, and Cabo San Lucas. And three "at sea" (transit) days going south and two going north after the last stop in Cabo.

The most frequent question I was asked when I returned to work is, "you got the flu?" And I was like "NO!"

When I disembarked, I noticed that KTVU and KGO radio was there to interview people who just departed and were to embark soon. KGO-TV (ABC 7) decided to get their helicopter and film the ship departing for its next cruise to Mexico.

But really everyone, the cruise ship was far away from any real danger from this Swine Flu.

The Star Princess has satellite TV and all cabins can at least receive the BBC, and one of CNN's news broadcast sister stations. Those stations had priority over others like the Cartoon network and TNT's coverage of the NBA playoffs.

The Swine flu story did not hit the TV news until we reached Cabo San Lucas, and it was not in "hyper news" mode. It was typically the headline story, but coverage mostly focused on that Miss USA controversy with Miss California. It was until our last two days at sea that the word was breaking out like crazy about the illness spreading to the United States and the media going crazy and wild with every single minute on the flu.

For the Star Princess, it was not much of a major concern. With the norovirus being the big headliner news of the cruise industry, all the cruise lines, including Princess has taken very serious prevention measures to stop the spread of the stomach virus. But these prevention measures and the actions the ship's crew asked the public to take upon also helps dramatically reduce the risk of the Swine Flu.

Princess has done the following during my trip, even before the words "Swine Flu" hit the TV airwaves:

1. Passengers are surveyed about any illnesses before boarding the ship.
2. Hand sanitizers are available at every food venue. For example, the pizza and burger bars have hand sanitizers next to where you order, and the Horizon Court buffet has a station next to the stack of plates.
3. All the public restrooms have reminders over the toilet and urinal stalls to wash hands for at least 20 seconds.
4. The daily "Princess Patter" had a health reminder published everyday including warnings about eating at the Mexican ports (don't drink the water!! The classic joke...).
5. They frequently sanitized areas of the ship, like the handrails, lounge bar tables, and other public areas.

Especially noted, when this story started coming into the news, it was happening in Mexico city, and even the nearest port we stopped in Mexico was at least four hours away by car from the capitol.

I guess our cruise was the lucky one, we got out just in time. The Star Princess departed yesterday afternoon going on a three day at-sea journey to the southern most port of Acapulco and will head up north to the other ports before returning to San Francisco is approximately nine days. I'm checking with my colleagues at Cruise Critic for more info, but the Star Princess info has not been published.

HOWEVER: I just checked the ship's webcam and the ship is now heading to Ensenada, Mexico. It looks like the ship will be making their "technical stop" for legal reasons (it's a foreign flagged ship and by U.S. law, requires to stop in at least one foreign port), but Princess has not released any word about the ship making a different route, such as doing a U.S. West Coast trip.

For all you San Franciscans who work near the Wharf or major tourism companies in the city, there are ships that will be coming to Pier 35 sometime soon and a MEGASHIP will be visiting on a weekly basis. With many cruise companies turning away from Mexico, they need some place to stop to keep the passengers from turning the ship into a mutiny. Cruise Critic has some information, but...

Official postings from the Pier 35 website is as followed:

• Carnival: Carnival Splendor will make an SF appearance instead of stopping at Cabo San Lucas. Not updated on Pier 35 website, but is on Cruise Critic. I'm assuming that the ship is in route right now and should show-up soon. That ship is HUGE and it met-up with the Star Princess just about five days ago at Cabo San Lucas.
  
• Celebrity: Celebrity Infinity will arrive on May 11, 2009 (PIER 27). Word from the company is that it is currently doing a repositioning cruise and Mexico's ports will be skipped.
  
• Crystal: Crystal Serenity will arrive on May 5, 2009. The company has not released any info, but they are heading south from Victoria, Canada and after SF, will stop in Los Angeles.
  
• Fred.Olsen: Balmoral will arrive on April 29, 2009 (TOMORROW). The company says they are on a world cruise and will be skipping Mexico for Costa Rica and Guatemala.
  
• NCL: NCL Pearl will arrive on May 5, 2009. No info at company's website, but April 29 and May 1st port of calls in Mexico have been cancelled (via Cruise Critic).
  
• Princess: Star Princess will arrive on May 7, 2009 (regularly scheduled disembarkation).
• Royal Caribbean: Serenade of the Seas will arrive May 2, 2009 (repositioning?).
  
• Royal Caribbean: Radiance of the Seas will arrive on May 13, 2009 (looks like a repositioning).
• Royal Caribbean: Mariner of the Seas will arrive on Mondays from 2PM to 8PM. The cruise originates from Los Angeles (round-trip), with stops at San Francisco, Victoria (Canada) and Seattle. It will do a west coast U.S. trip instead of its planned Mexico trip. Not published in Pier 35 website, but is on the RCC's website. Details for the ship and new ports of calls is here. Arrival dates at SF: 5/4, 5/11, 5/25, 6/1, 6/8, 6/15, 6/22, 6/29, 7/6, 7/13, 7/20, 8/3, 8/10, 8/17, 8/24, and 8/31. That ship alone carries over 3,100 passengers. Star Princess met the Mariner of the Seas at its stop in Puerto Vallara.
  

I think our tourism industry is going to have a good time. Remember to pay those taxes so maybe we can fix MUNI!!!!

So after all this fear about sickness from my cruise and getting that out of the way, I had a lot of fun! Sorry for not posting on my blog during my ten day absence, but I was having way too much fun, including being in a hypnotist show. People told me that I was the most hilarious, especially when I was asked to rub my butt on the carpet and the lounge furniture.

UPDATE: Word from a user from Cruise Critic reports that the recently departed Star Princess will now stop at: Long Beach, Santa Barbara, Catalina Island, and San Diego. It will skip all Mexico ports other than the required one by law (Ensenada). I guess I should be lucky that I didn't take this later departure.

UPDATE #2: The Sapphire Princess will be visiting San Francisco sometime within a seven day period starting on May 2nd. This itinerary change is posted in the USA Today blog. Their arrival to SF is May 7th (update from Princess Cruises).

UPDATE #3: The Carnival Splendor ship is out at sea right now and is planning to make only one stop... San Francisco. Word has it the passengers are pissed. See at Cruise Critic and their message board.

UPDATE #4: The Pacific Princess will stop in San Francisco on May 11th from 9AM to 10PM on its northbound journey towards Seattle. This is posted on the Princess Cruises website.

SF Muni Scales Back 74X CultureBus Service

San Francisco's Muni, home of the useless 74X CultureBus... a.k.a. the bus program that wastes tax dollars. Unfortunately our dreams have not come true and it has not been eliminated, but has been trimmed back in an effort to save money.

The San Francisco Chronicle reports today that the empty CultureBus will be reduced to hourly service, instead of every 20 minutes. The savings for Muni will be about $620,000 with the reduction in service; only two bus drivers will be assigned to the route, and three vehicles will be available (one is a backup vehicle).

But in my opinion, I believe that Muni can save EVEN MORE MONEY is by simply eliminating the CultureBus service and simply move the drivers and vehicles to other lines in the city that needs the demand. The 38 Geary and 38L Geary Limited are the most heavily used bus lines in the city, with an average speed of 8 (yes... eight) miles per hour. Extra vehicles and drivers can help reduce the crowds.

Muni's existing bus lines serve the stops that the CultureBus makes, and transferring to another bus line is not that bad. The 5-Fulton serves the heart of downtown (a short walk to Union Square where the CultureBus stop is), stops nearby the Academy of Sciences and the De Young Museum, and makes a stop at Civic Center plaza where the Asian Art Museum is located. And for people wanting to go to the Legion of Honor (a non-CultureBus stop), the 5-Fulton's terminal at Ocean Beach (La Playa and Cabrillo) is a transfer point for the 18-46th Avenue, and the 18 line also serves the zoo.

So SFMTA, what's the real point of the CultureBus? Taxpayer money to serve a "tour bus" route? The private tour bus agencies already offer a "hop-on, hop-off" bus service and serves more areas than the CultureBus, and while the cost of the private tour bus is more, it's offset by the more areas they visit, the fast service, and the open top double deck vehicles, perfect for photos. SFMTA/Muni is supposed to serve the residents and commuters to get to where they are going. We are not a dedicated tour bus agency, we are a public transit agency. Tourists are surely welcome to use Muni, but please understand that you share it with the local residents and commuters who need to get to work and home. The bus and trains will stop in obscure neighborhoods that you tourists may never visit, but at least it will eventually stop at your tourist attraction.

Is the Muni CultureBus really necessary?

Many local bloggers and a KPIX are noting that the San Francisco "CultureBus" (a.k.a. 74X) is the laughing joke of Muni.

KPIX reports that only 200 passengers a day are riding the bus, thereby the average number is about five per vehicle per route. Plus, it costs over a million dollars a year to run the route.

So with such poor ridership, why should we San Franciscians foot the bill for such a useless Muni line? Surely, the idea of an express bus that can zoom you from Golden Gate Park to Civic Center and Union Square is a nice idea, but the tourists don't know about it, and the locals hate it.

Before the CultureBus started, operators of the local tour agencies of San Francisco (such as Gray Line) argued in front of the SFMTA board that the program undercuts the tourism industry because the CultureBus is a taxpayer subsidized program that's literally a tour bus/shuttle service to all the major museums. Many tour agencies in S.F. offer shuttle services to MULTIPLE locations around San Francisco and have buses that are at least half-full, even on the "value" tourist season here in our beloved city.

Here's why I believe the CultureBus program should be cut:

• The fare is $7, the same fare offered on express buses to Candlestick Park for 49ers games. But the transfer provides unlimited rides on the CultureBus and other Muni lines, excluding the Cable Car. Many locals call the $7 fare a serious rip-off for CultureBus, but $7 for the Candlestick express is a good deal and travels a LONG distance. The CultureBus travels less than five miles.
  
• The fare for Fast Pass and Passport Holders is an additional $3. What kind of crap is that? Fast Passes are allowed on Cable Cars, so what the hell is wrong with the CultureBus?
  
• The service does not cover the Legion of Honor and the Zoo. This means, you will suffer a long and horrible ride on the ever packed 38-Limited, the loud L-Taraval, and the stop-and-go 18-46th Avenue.
• Muni is suffering through a budget shortfall, that CultureBus money could be used to add buses to operate on the heavily used 38-Limited line.
  

Muni could save the program and make it profitable if they do the following changes:

• Promote the program.
• Reduce the fare to the regular $1.50 price. Or offer it at a lower charge (such as $3) to keep the commuters off the bus, and focus it on locals and tourists who wants to visit the museums via an express bus.
• Accept the Fast Pass, Muni Passport, and the tourist's CityPass with NO surcharge.
• Accept the BART to Muni transfer for a 25 cent discount.
  
• Work with the major museums to create a discounted "superpass" that offers unlimited admission for a set number of days, and includes free transit service on all vehicles, including CultureBus. (The "New York Pass" program is an excellent example, if you hate a museum, at least you didn't waste $30, and can just visit another one, all on a timed card, but there's no free transit option on there).
• Extend out into the other major attractions including the Zoo and the Legion of Honor. Heck, they could run a second route starting from the Academy of Sciences/De Young, and drive off to Legion, and continue on Great Highway to the Zoo. I think the locals would love this route because they don't have to suffer the slow ride on the 38-Limited, and the stop-and-go ride on the 18-46th Avenue route. Just a buck fifty extra? I'd pay that.

(Photo is from CultureBus website, since Muni is a public government agency, it is public domain).

Tourist traps... when can the locals have some fun?

I hate to say it, but San Francisco is a tourist trap, especially downtown, the Cable Cars, and Pier 39.

Regardless of where you live, you must have some sort of tourist trap, from an overpriced souvenir shop, to a major chain restaurant like Hard Rock.

Here in San Francisco, I'm fed-up with tourists and the traps out to snare them. When can the locals go out and enjoy the time and have some fun too?

A good example is our Cable Cars, one of the most legendary thing about San Francisco's history. But when you go during the summer, it's always packed with tourists, and long lines just to get onboard. Muni also rips you off by charging $5 a ride, and it's unfair to the locals that sometimes depend on the route to get to work, and those that just want to enjoy the nice weekend.

Anyone who rides the F-line historic streetcars knows about how extremely crowded they are, and how long the lines are. Can't they just buy some more of those streetcars to fix with the overflow? Especially bad is that those tourists don't like to stand in the back, and that upsets me because I can't get onboard while I'm screaming at people telling them to move back! What are you afraid of back there? If you believe that's where the "bad" people sit there, we've got a big problem.

Pier 39 is the worst of the worst of tourist traps. High prices on food and products, floods of tourists snapping their cameras away, and parking so expensive that the local resident's wallet would scream in pain because it is empty.

But the nice thing about being a local, you get to push and mess around with the tourists. One time, I was going down the ramp to exit the Pier 39 garage, and some bozo with an SUV stopped in the lane and went to prepay his ticket at the machine. I honked my horn for an entire minute because (1) they knew that they were supposed to prepay before exiting, (2) the machines were at each pedestrian entrance to the garage, (3) and you don't just park your car on the main road to get out!

Some tourists are also extremely STUPID, and I really mean STUPID. Here's a great example. I'm driving home from some grocery shopping in Daly City's Trader Joes, and when I pass by the Zoo on Great Highway, I see a family of four: husband and wife, an older daughter, and a grandfather with a cane. I noticed about 500 feet away that the husband and wife crossed over a barrier to get across (j-walk) the first two lanes of the Great Highway. The grandfather and daughter were waiting for their chance to cross too.

Here's what's so STUPID! Why attempt to cross a road that has a speed limit of 45, has no traffic spacing (there is no traffic signal before the j-walking site), cars frequently driving on the road, and why have an old guy who has a cane attempt to illegally j-walk?

Tourists in downtown are especially stupid to attempt to cross on Geary Blvd. at Powell when the signal clearly says not to do so. But they sure try. Now whenever I drive through that intersection, I have to have my hand ready on the horn to tell them to move the F---- back! It's my green light, not yours!

Let's summarize my rants
Tourism sucks when you live in a city full of tourists
Yes, it is good for the economy, thanks Mayor Newsom, but I still hate tourists
Pay attention! Follow the rules and laws, and you won't get hit by a car!