Did you know that 50 percent of all trips around town are taken by green transportation modes—Muni, bikes, walking or ridesharing? Great job, San Francisco! Learn more about this and other transportation trends and what this means for SF here (.pdf).
San Franciscans have also consistently supported funding better transportation choices at the ballot box, including San Francisco’s Transit First policy, created in the 1970s; Proposition K sales tax for transportation, passed in 2003; and last November’s Propositions A and B that approved a $500 million bond for the city’s transportation infrastructure and adjusting the city’s budget so that annual transportation funds are based on population growth. Prop. K and B funds helped make the new electric trolley and hybrid buses unveiled today possible.
These state-of-art buses represent the next phase of upgrades for Muni’s aging buses and trains. Sixty brand new electric trolley buses will replace buses that have been in operation for more than two decades. Muni has also purchased 61 new biodiesel-electric hybrid buses to add to the 112 already on the street. All this is part of Muni's plan to replace the all of its buses over the next three to four years.
The introduction of the new low-floor biodiesel hybrid and electric trolley buses coincides with this year’s celebration of Earth Day. The new hybrids will run on B20: a blend of diesel and biodiesel, which is made from recycled oil and fat. The trolleys operate on 100 percent hydro-electric power.
More than half of Muni’s vehicles run on clean, Hetch Hetchy electric power; our trolley coaches and light rail vehicles and our cable cars are all powered by electric motors, providing more than 125 million zero-emission passenger trips per day.
In addition to being one of the most diverse transit fleets in the world, Muni is also the cleanest multimodal fleet in California.
The new buses will also make Muni more reliable. In addition to the new buses, Muni is also launching the largest set of service increases in decades this Saturday. With the Muni Forward initiative well underway, more Muni service and customer amenities will make your trips easier than ever.
We want to make your green transportation options in SF the best transportation options. Thank you for helping us get there! Learn more about what SF is doing citywide to make our city more sustainable and how you can help at www.sfclimateaction.org.
Ed Reiskin and Mayor Lee flank Muni Operator Johnnie Waller, III, who was charged with operating today's trip for the Mayor in the www.climateaction.org bus that will be on SF's streets through the end of May.
Muni transit chief, John Haley, walks reporters through some of the finer points of interest on our new buses.
New buses on display next to Boeddeker Park for today's Earth Day celebration.