MUNI OUTRAGE

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Click here for MUNIoutrage Incident/Service Report Form

From the November 15 episode of ‘My Country’ on Access SF2 in San Francisco.

To view more episodes of ‘My Country’, please visit Bay Media Lab.

MUNI OUTRAGE

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Click here for MUNIoutrage Incident/Service Report Form

MUNI Riders Q&A

“I am outraged with the public when it comes to public transportation.  How many times have you tried to get on a bus, but you can’t, because the front half of the bus is too overcrowded while there are empty seats on the back. How about the dirt, filth, etc.? 

“MUNI executives do not put it on the buses. MUNI has many, many problems and needs our help in resolving them, but I have yet to see anyone ask the public to take responsibility for their own actions. 

“Most problems I have with MUNI would be resolved it the public acted responsibly.”

 - Richard M.  Nov 5, 2007 10:26 AM 

Richard-

I agree completely that the Public, including myself, have a role to play in making MUNI a more enjoyable experience for everyone. However, the argument you make evokes the old ‘chicken or the egg’ causality dilemma… which comes first? 

I believe that a good MUNI experience + good public education can improve rider cooperation and build a sense of ownership & pride among riders, and that these must happen in that order. 

 ”What happens to the reports that the public submit on your web site?  I was thinking your site would be a clearinghouse for anecdotes about MUNI incidents, that riders can view, but in a quick scan of the site, I didn’t see any section devoted to public reports…”

 - Alexandra D.  Nov 4, 2007 8:26 PM 

Alexandra-

Within a day or two, we will be releasing a real-time link that everyone will be able to use to view a summary of reports we receive. This summary will include all the data on our form, including comments, with the exception of personal contact information in order to respect riders’ privacy. 

Look for the heading ‘RECENT COMMENTS’ on the blog site to learn what other MUNI users are experiencing and their suggestions for improving the system. 

“Thanks for creating this website!! The need for this website is a clear crack in Mayor Newsom’s desire to control his personal and political image in SF. It MUNI was not in such dire needs, it would not have come about.

“IDEA:  I have noted many of the bus stands have indicators of when the next bus line is due (www.nextbus.com). However, not everyone has an internet enabled phone or PDA. How about everyone be encouraged to call 311 letting them know whenever the buses are not meeting the schedule?  Or are these banners reporting estimated arrival times for already late buses?  In other words, are the arrival times already updated for late buses?If everyone was encouraged to call 311, perhaps the large queue time would send a strong signal.

“Alternatively, is there another number to call when MUNI buses fail to arrive based on ‘nextbus’ postings? ”

- Alfred B.  Nov 1, 2007 4:14 PM 

Alfred-

I have been told that ‘311’ is the preferred  way to submit a compliment or complaint  report to MUNI via telephone… the live operators will take your information over the phone and it is passed to MUNI in real-time. If you request a direct response, MUNI is supposed to answer in 3 weeks, or 4 – 6 weeks, depending on who you talk to. During several calls I have made in recent months, I have been able to get through quickly and the operators have been efficient & polite. Where the system seems to bog down is after the information is passed to MUNI. 

For example, I filed a report using this method on July 10, 2007, concerning a #47 driver who left me standing at the dark North Point stop about 10:30 pm, though I was clearly within his view and in spite of the fact that I was walking with a cane due to an injury. I reported the incident from the bus stop using my cell phone and requested a formal response. At the time, I was told I would hear from MUNI in ‘a week or two’. 

A few weeks later I called again because I had not received a response. The ‘311’ operator was able to look up my complaint quickly using my telephone number.  However, this time, I was told that the ‘normal’ response time was 4 – 6 weeks and that I would definitely receive a response ‘if I was patient’. More time passed before I called the Mayor’s office where a sympathetic female ‘MUNI liaison’ told me that she would ‘look into it’. 

Tonight, before responding to you, I called ‘311’ about the incident again. This time, a seemingly-knowledgeable operator looked up my complaint using my name. He confirmed that it showed my request for a response and gave me an incident report number that gave me a higher degree of confidence that the report was filed. He agreed to resubmit my request for a response and told me the response should have been sent within 3 weeks according to guidelines he had been given. 

This is one of the most important reasons that I created MUNIOutrage.com to collect an independent database of reports from riders because, without a response, how can I be sure that anyone at MUNI considered my report or know what action was taken? With a mechanism this unresponsive, how can the Mayor or the Public trust the service summaries we are given?

I appreciate your concern and agree that it is important to connect with those riders who do not use the Internet though it may take some time to develop the capacity. Currently our group does not take phone reports but we have received a number of reports by email, in addition to those submitted on our form, and they will be added to our database.

“Just wondering what kind of help you need with your new site?”

- Bob C.  Nov 1, 2007 3:35 PM 

Bob –

We started from scratch recently so there isn’t much we don’t need help with. 

Our #1 priority right now is continuing to get the word out… developing up-to-date fax and email lists for news outlets, writing press releases, finding the resources to print flyers, and getting them into the hands of MUNI riders… finding creative ways to spread our message using the Internet… perhaps some viral ads posted on YouTube!… etc.

The role you choose should be something you enjoy and have experience doing … let me know about your skills and how much time you have, then let’s talk.

MUNI OUTRAGE

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Click here for MUNIoutrage Incident/Service Report Form

Thanks to Chron writer Rachel Gordon

We took a big step forward today with SF Chronicle writer Rachel Gordon’s story, “New blog lets Muni riders vent online”, which helped us connect with many more concerned MUNI riders.

You can help us move forward more quickly, too, by sending our URL munioutrage.com to everyone you know who uses the transit system in San Francisco. The more people who use our reporting form, the more data we collect, and the faster we can make our case.

Also, Thanks to the hundreds of you who took the time to submit a report today or leave a comment on the website. I’m glad to know we are in this together. I hope that the Mayor, MUNI management, and - most of all - MUNI drivers come to see the problems from that perspective, too … we are all in this together!’

I will be away for the weekend. Much more to come next week.

Please REMEMBER to help spread the word!

Howard

MUNI OUTRAGE

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Click here for MUNIoutrage Incident/Service Report Form

GRASSROOTS GROUP BEGINS COLLECTING DATA FROM TRANSIT RIDERS

October 31, 2007

SAN FRANCISCO - Has anyone seen Mayor Gavin Newsom riding MUNI? Listening to his State of the City address, one might conclude he uses the public transit system.

“MUNI riders won’t be fooled so easily because anyone who actually needs to depend on public transit in San Francisco knows that it isn’t reliable, unless you are talking about reliably bad and getting worse,” says Howard Vicini of MUNIOutrage.com.

Mayor Newsom drew rosy conclusions in a rambling hour and a half speech and Powerpoint presentation, titled, ” Progress by the Numbers” quoting “incontrovertible” and “absolute” facts. However, Vicini says his grassroots group has numerous reports of requests for incident report forms, made to ‘311′, the Metropolitan Transit Authority (MTA), and even the Mayor’s office, being promised but never delivered.

“How incontrovertible are his facts when MUNI skews their reports by not collecting available data?” asks Vicini. “We intend to challenge the Mayor’s assertions directly using the power of technology that allows us to tap every rider as a source of information without needing to post them on every corner with clipboards.

“The MUNIOutrage.com report form linked on our website allows anyone to report an incident, late arrivals, crowded vehicles, and other problems from their computer, PDA, or cell phone, wherever they are, whenever it is convenient, and as the need arises.”

Vicini laughs, “If our rider reports confirm the Mayor’s ‘absolute’ facts, I will be the first to congratulate him.”

Clearly, Vicini does not expect to be eating crow anytime soon. “A bad experience on MUNI on the way to work can trickle down all day to employers, co-workers, and customers. I personally believe that MUNI’s failure is degrading the quality of life for all San Franciscans and our guests – the foreign tourists who jammed the system all summer while traveling to take advantage of the weak dollar. Did the Chamber of Commerce collect data about their transit experience?”

Vicini continues, “From a labor standpoint, the Mayor’s appointee, MTA Director Nathaniel P. Ford, Sr., has also failed to engage his work force … disgruntled drivers are now using the lack of maintenance workers as an excuse to take vehicles offline, allowing them to go home, and collect part or all of their pay, a repeat of a problem that was well-known in the 1990’s … that adds to overcrowding to an extent that it is dangerous on many routes, increasing friction between drivers and riders, and demoralizing the entire system.

“Our form designer, Geoff Clevenger of Elyseum.com, has given us a great tool for collecting large volumes of ‘incontrovertible’ data that is based in reality and I believe the Public is ready for this endeavor,” Vicini concludes.

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MUNI OUTRAGE

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Click here for MUNIoutrage Incident/Service Report Form

Are you a MUNI rider? Are you fed up? Are your transit problems affecting your quality of life in San Francisco?

Then you’ve come to the right place!

SUBMIT A MUNIOutrage Service/Incident Report!

Join other outraged MUNI riders who plan to convert rage into a plan for positive change by compiling data to challenge the Mayor’s office and MUNI management to fix the system.

Please let us know what you can do to help. Contact us at munioutrage@gmail.com right now!

A database specialist is hard at work to empower an army of riders armed with cell phones, PDA’s, and laptops to feed data concerning the transit system anytime one of us rides or observes a MUNI vehicle. Our collective effort will combine to give us an independent database of MUNI operations to serve as objective, tangible proof that the system needs to be fixed.

Whatever your experience, we need you!

Even if you don’t have time to volunteer, you are welcome to write to us about your specific transit problems and complaints. Please provide a vehicle number, time, and the exact location when the incident happened, whenever possible.

Header image of Newsom-Ford
by Luke Thomas - Fog City Journal