11 November 2009 ~ Comments

Response to Beyond Chron Editorial

Project Overview

This response was originally posted on Beyond Chron (November 10).

To the Editor:

Thank you for posting Peter Lauterborn’s thoughtful Central Subway guest editorial on November 4.  Mr. Lauterborn asked some great questions, and I would like to share additional insights from a project planning perspective.

Where are the plans for the North Beach Extension?

Currently, plans for a North Beach extension, or Phase 3, of the Central Subway are preliminary and would benefit greatly from a formal public approval process. In 1998, Jackson Street was the environmental limit line, where the Central Subway terminus station is located. The project does include a provision to extend the tunnels (for construction purposes only) from Chinatown to North Beach, where the tunnels will daylight and the tunnel boring machines can be extracted in North Beach.  An extension of the current Central Subway, or a Phase 3 project, requires a separate planning study and a separate funding request process – Phase 2 and Phase 3 cannot be built at the same time.

Rendering of Union Square/Market Street Station

Rendering of Union Square/Market Street Station

Why not opt for shallower & more accessible tunnels?

Several construction alternatives were studied and more information on the options can be found in the environmental document.  Deep tunneling has great potential for controlling project costs by minimizing surface construction disruption, reducing utility relocations and shortening construction delivery times.  The only visible tunneling activity will occur at the portal construction location (Fourth Street between Bryant and Harrison Streets) and at the TBM extraction site (Columbus Avenue at Union Street).  A combination of cut and cover, and mined excavation will be used for the construction of the subway stations.  Stations will have elevator, escalator or stairway access.

How is the future Geary Street light rail being optimized?

In partnership with SFMTA, the San Francisco County Transportation Authority (SFCTA) is leading the planning phase for transit improvements along Geary Boulevard, including Bus Rapid Transit (BRT), and they completed a feasibility study in 2007.  For more information on the project, visit their Web site.  The Central Subway design will allow for a future non-revenue tunnel connection to a future Geary Subway near the vicinity of the Union Square/Market Street Station on Geary or Post St. This will allow for vehicles operating on a future Geary Line to have access to the Central Subway maintenance facility.  A mezzanine connection in the vicinity of the Union Square/Market Street Subway Station is possible to allow for a passenger connection to a future Geary Line.

Construction of the Central Subway is scheduled to begin with utilities relocation in early 2010.

For more information on project, please visit our Web site and connect with us on Twitter.

Sincerely,

John Funghi, SFMTA Central Subway Program Manager

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  • @Mark a little harsh but I underatand your comments.
  • Mark
    The Central Subway is a failure in its purpose, concept and design. The powers-at-be were idiots for never pushing for Phase Two to include North Beach and beyond. With opening day a decade away this means that any attempt to bring a true north-south connection is at least 20 years away. This is quite sad. Much of SF is as dense as NYC, yet, with the exception of the congested Market St. Subway, there is no rapid transit in place. (Even this attempt is hampered by 5 lines merging in one tunnel that causes major delays on most days. Trust me, I rode it for 8 years.) Unless the transit system pulls its head out of its butt soon more people will take to the roads in their cars. SOMA is slated for hundreds of new commercial and residential units, yet there is NO mass transit planned for the area. The only purpose of the Central Subway is to connect two Chinese communities. It will generate very few new riders and without a true terminus and greater purpose it is obsolete before it is built.

    I am a HUGE fan and supporter of mass transit. I lived and breathed the subway systems of NYC and Washington, DC when I lived there. I didn't need to own a car. I was in college when Buffalo opened its light rail system, a 6-mile stretch of tunnel and downtown pedestrian mall that replaced a single bus line. I found out that no system is perfect in its design or effectiveness. (For example, it took 2 train connections to get me from the Upper West Side to Midtown East.) The residents of San Francisco deserve a real mass transit system that connects major residential and commercial centers, not a politically-charged Band-Aid that goes nowhere.
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