Senate Bill (SB) 434 by Senator David Min (D-Irvine) was signed into law in 2023 and requires the state’s ten largest transit agencies, including the SFMTA, to collect comprehensive quantitative and qualitative data to understand the experiences and perceptions of safety and harassment on transit.
In 2023, the SFMTA partnered with UCLA's Institute of Transportation Studies to conduct a comprehensive Muni rider survey measuring experiences with harassment on Muni. For our 2024 research, we combined the UCLA survey with the Mineta Transportation Institute's Street Harassment Survey, with some modifications, to meet the requirements of the law and maintain the integrity of our existing database. In November 2024, with the assistance of Civic Edge Consulting and FM3 Opinion Research and Strategy, we began surveying Muni riders on 15 Muni lines where existing data shows greater incidents of harassment. The survey was offered in English, Cantonese, Spanish, and Filipino according to San Francisco's language ordinance. We also shared access to the survey with over 100 community-based organizations and city departments to promote among the community members they serve.
Additionally, we partnered with two community-based organizations - the Coalition for Community Safety and Justice and Good Samaritan Family Resource Center - to help host and facilitate focus groups in Chinese and Spanish.
Our research will continue through the end of January 2025 with a target total of 2000 Muni rider surveys and four additional focus groups.
One of the requirements of SB 434 was to publish the data collected by December 31, 2024. While our research continues, we have published the data collected through mid-December and a summary of the highlights of our research. We will update this information with a final report and additional data.