The San Francisco transport agency pulled a Beyoncé.
The San Francisco Municipal Transportation Agency (SFMTA) manages about 1,100 vehicles — 40 of which are historically significant streetcars with production years dating back as far as 1915. While not nearly as well-loved (yet) as say the “Peter Witt” cars that run up and down the F Market and Wharves line, Muni did just debut the first of its new 30 much more up-to-date buses over the weekend (without even a teaser video or social media soft launch).
bart isn’t the only agency celebrating today; muni riders, meet your new ride! the first of our 30, new, air-conditioned and far more reliable buses entered service today. you can expect to see them roll out on routes like the 35, 36, 37, 39, 66 and 67 over the coming months. https://t.co/JwggWjhn3P pic.twitter.com/euBX6cfKlW
— Alexander Hirji (@sashazandr) September 10, 2022
In a tweet from Alexander Hirji, one of the members of SFMTA’s Youth Transportation Advisory Board, it was announced that “the first of [SFMTA’s] 30, new, air-conditioned and far more reliable buses entered service” on Saturday, September 10.
“You can expect to see [these updated buses] roll out on routes like the 35, 36, 37, 39, 66, and 67 over the coming months,” Hirji continues, previously nodding at BART’s 50th birthday celebration on the same day — “bart isn’t the only agency celebrating today.”
The buses, which appear to be marginally smaller with slightly reduced passenger capacity, are made by El Dorado, a Riverside-based company that produces quality low-floor and standard floor buses for transit markets.
A peek inside one of them shows an array of blue seats organized in a familiar fashion. Though evidently not as comfortable as some riders had hoped for, they’re far better than those hard ones currently found inside SFMTA’s newly introduced fleet of battery-electric buses.
With all of us finally coming down from the recent Bay Area-wide heat wave, it’s nice to know that we can find respite from hot temperatures inside these new air-conditioned cocoons on wheels when the next one inevitably descends on the region. Because climate crisis.
Feature Image: Courtesy of Twitter via @sashazandr
