S.F. Muni Embarks on a Big Expansion in Bus and Light-Rail Service

San Francisco's Muni is launching a major expansion in bus and Metro light-rail service this weekend that officials say is a response to both the city's increasing population and changes in how people work and play here.

San Francisco Municipal Transportation Agency officials say more frequent service will start Saturday on Muni's six light-rail lines as well as on 14 bus routes. The agency is expanding service hours on eight bus lines and creating connections to BART on two other routes. It's also adding overnight "owl" service on two lines.

Saturday will mark the fourth and largest service increase that's part of what the agency calls Muni Forward, a project that began in January 2015.

But the real expansion will be seen on Monday, the first weekday in the new schedule, said John Haley, Muni's director of transit.

"We will have more service out on the streets than we've ever had in the history of the agency," Haley said in an interview. "We're responding to a need when people are living and working differently than they were 20 years ago."

With an influx of new riders stemming from San Francisco's recent boom, SFMTA is responding to new commute patterns.

"We're no longer all going downtown," Haley said. "The demographics, the job market in the city is changing."

He pointed to examples like Mission Bay and Bayview-Hunters Point, areas of the city that have seen an influx of new workers and residents, that Muni hopes to serve better.

Among the lines that will see new runs and increased frequency are major routes, like the 1-California and 47-Van Ness, as well as less-trafficked ones, like the 2-Clement and the 31-Balboa.

Muni is putting two dozen more buses on the street and had to hire more than 40 operators, Haley said.

Improved service is a "nudge" in the right direction, says Jason Henderson, a San Francisco State University professor who specializes in urban transportation. But he says Muni should be trying to do more.

The city should be looking at doubling Muni ridership and creating major expansions in service instead of making incremental changes, Henderson said.

"There should be service increases to all areas," Henderson said in an email.

"Hopefully these late-night routes and expansion of weekend service will inspire more," Henderson said. "The more Muni works for people, the higher their expectations will get, the more willing they'll be for supporting politics and financing that make Muni an excellent system citywide."

The increased service will cost $20 million from the SFMTA operating budget which is drawn from the city's general fund, fare and parking revenues.