The latest round of criticism of the Central Subway, including an article in the SF Weekly is not based on any new evidence, but rather on the fact that the project is very close to achieving the Full Funding Grant Agreement.

In 2007, Mr. Peskin was very clear in his support of the project stating, “As San Francisco gets denser and more congested, we’re going to have to make those investments. Are they expensive? Yes, they’re very expensive. But is it going to be worth it for the future of San Francisco? Absolutely.”  (Source: http://abclocal.go.com/kgo/story?section=news/local&id=5133662)

Mr. Peskin also emphasized one of the major benefits of the project, a north-south connection that will strengthen the SFMTA transit network when the Central Subway is finished as Phase 2 of the T Third Light Rail Project.  “I think you have to look at the project in its entirety. It’s not a 1.7-mile project. It’s a 7-mile project that connects the southeast to the northeast of San Francisco from Visitacion Valley to Chinatown/North Beach.”

There were numerous inaccurate statements in the article that are regularly promoted by a very vocal opposition group:

• The Central Subway will, in fact, be significantly faster than a bus from Chinatown to Caltrain.  A 20 minute bus time during peak commute hours will be reduced to eight minutes via light rail.  The idea that the subway will take five to 10 minutes longer is patently false.

• To put the cost in context, New York City’s Second Avenue Subway costs $4.5 billion which is $1.8 billion per mile compared to Central Subway’s $1.6 billion which is $929 million per mile.  Furthermore, in evaluating the cost of the project, the notion that the budget is continuing to inflate is incorrect.  The Central Subway is on budget per local, state, and federal commitments to date.  The original budget that was proposed for the project originated over ten years ago.  Comparing a proposed budget from over ten years ago to today’s project cost is unfair.  Inflation and construction cost increases over a ten year period must be considered in any development project.

• Based on the most recent ridership model, the project will have daily boardings per mile that far exceed comparable projects.  For example, the 2030 ridership model calculates over 12,000 boardings per mile for the 1.7-mile Central Subway compared to about 7,000 boardings per mile for the N Judah, currently the SFMTA’s line with the highest ridership.  The Hawaii Automated Line, a similar New Starts light rail project currently under Final Design in congested, downtown Honolulu will have estimated boardings per mile of 5,000.  The need for this project is evident now and the need will be even greater as the City continues to grow, because ridership will only increase with major new development projects planned for the Hunters Point Shipyard. The projects include 10,000 housing units, 2 million square feet of research and development space, 800,000 square feet of retail, 200 acres of new parks and open space, and a possible new stadium.  The population along the Third Street corridor, 68 percent of whom currently do not own vehicles and depend on public transportation, is expected to increase by 24,000 people.

If we want to provide clean alternative means of public transportation to accommodate future population and ridership growth, we must improve our transit system by completing the Central Subway Project.  The project provides significant benefits to the City which include decreasing air and noise pollution, reducing surface congestion and private passenger vehicles on the street, meeting Federal Clean Air Act requirements, and, most importantly, providing much-needed alternative public transit options for people who live, visit and work in San Francisco.  The fact remains: this project stands strongly on its merits and the SFMTA remains committed to its delivery.

The Central Subway Project is making tremendous progress and has accomplished a number of major milestones so far this year alone including:

• Receiving the highest overall rating for the fourth consecutive year under the federal New Starts program for project justification and cost effectiveness.

• Completing the first construction contract relocating underground utilities for the Moscone Station and Portal under the I-80 freeway.

• Initiating the second construction contract for utility relocation work for the Union Square/Market Street station which will be completed by the second quarter of 2012.

• Reaching 95 percent completion of the final design for the three underground stations and the surface track work/systems.

• Awarding the $233 million Guideway Tunnel contract, the largest of the project’s construction contracts, to the joint venture of Barnard Impregilo Healy. This bid came in $12 million under engineer’s estimates and notice to proceed will be issued this fall.

• Receiving by unanimous vote of the San Francisco County Transportation Authority (SFCTA) an allocation of $57 million in Prop K funds for the purchase of the tunnel boring machines (TBM) and to construct the TBM launch box.

• Staying on track to receive the $942 million Full Funding Grant Agreement from the Federal Transit Administration (FTA) by the end of this year.

With all the accomplishments the project has achieved thus far; the continued support from our local, state, and federal elected officials; and the unwavering enthusiasm of the local community, the project will move forward to improve the City’s public transit system that will connect people and communities along the north-south corridor.

We would like to take this opportunity to address the five points mentioned in the blog post:

1. On July 1, 2011, the San Francisco Civil Grand Jury issued a scathing report on the Central Subway, citing Muni’s financial and operating difficulties as strong evidence that the SFMTA is in no position to operate an ill-conceived, money-losing subway. Here are two of the report’s many criticisms:

The Central Subway would result in the elimination of “direct connectivity from the T-Third line to the Muni Metro.”

With the Central Subway, “Riders not only lose the direct connections. They face “The Walk.” According to SFMTA, “To get from the Union Square/ Market Street Station to the Powell Street Muni Metro Station is about a thousand feet.”

Central Subway Response:

The Central Subway does not eliminate “direct connectivity” from the T Third Line to the rest of the Muni Metro. On the contrary, the Central Subway, the second phase of the T Third Light Rail Project, will provide a quicker trip to downtown for customers on the T, from approximately 30 minutes down to seven.

There will be a connection within walking distance of the Market/Powell Street station and the new station located at 4^th/Brannan Street will provide an additional transfer point if needed to Caltrain at 4^th and Townsend streets. As the City’s population continues to grow, particularly in the South of Market (SoMa), Mission Bay, Bayview Hunter’s Point Shipyard, and Visitation Valley communities, we must do all we can to grow the capacity of the City’s transit system. The Central Subway Project completes the north-south rail connection to fill that void.  The project will serve the growing population from the City’s southeast sector and provide them with direct access to SoMa, downtown, Chinatown and possibly neighborhoods further north in the future.

The Mayor, SFMTA, SFCTA and the Central Subway staff will provide the formal response to the San Francisco Civil Grand Jury report and their findings in August.

2. Governor Jerry Brown has just cut $27 million from State Proposition 1A allocations to the Central Subway. Another $34 million in Proposition 1A funds is potentially also on the chopping block. A State Proposition 1B allocation of $308 million could also be in jeopardy.

Central Subway Response:

The state bond funds were voted on and approved by  California citizens. More than $400 million are slated for building the Central Subway. Annually, the State Budget process caps how much bond proceeds will be allowed. Market conditions will also inform when and how many bonds the state will issue. The issue, then, is not how much money the project will receive but when. If these funds are delayed, the SFMTA will continue to work with its funding partners to craft proactive solutions.

Proposition 1A bond proceeds are intended to enhance local rail line connections to the proposed high-speed rail system. For fiscal year (FY) 2011-2012, Governor Brown is limiting funds to safety projects only. The delay of these funds ($27 million in FY 2012 and $61 million total) to the project, while disappointing, was anticipated by the SFMTA. The portion of the Central Subway that will connect with the 4^th and King streets high speed rail station area is scheduled to be constructed after 2013. The SFMTA and its funding partners fully expect that the Governor’s request to develop a comprehensive statewide rail plan as a basis for allocating these funds can be accomplished in time.

Due to the timing of Proposition 1B state bond sales, project sponsors statewide, including the SFMTA, have experienced delays in receiving voter-approved state funds. The leadership of the Metropolitan Transportation Commission (MTC), a key Central Subway partner, has shown a way to keep vital projects on track. Starting in January 2009, in order to keep critical projects moving forward, the MTC, acting as the Bay Area (bridge) Toll Authority (BATA), has entered into a bond purchase agreement for up to $200 million of bonds issued by the State of California to backfill Proposition 1B funds for Bay Area highway projects. This private placement sale allowed 10 Bay Area highway projects, already under construction, to avoid costly project construction suspensions. This same mechanism can be used to provide state bond proceed funds to Bay Area transit projects as well.

3. The House of Representatives is targeting pork barrel projects, threatening significant portions or even the entire New Starts program. SaveMuni.com Co-founder Howard Wong notes that without the full $983 million New Starts grant, the Central Subway project would “just drain state and local funds from the citywide Muni System.” He adds that the Grand Jury’s conclusion, “Central Subway—Too Much Money for Too Little Benefit,” succinctly crystallizes the problem.

Central Subway Response:

The federal government’s New Starts program is a highly competitive process, in which transportation infrastructure projects throughout the nation compete for a designated pool of funds.  This program has been a part of President Obama’s “Road to Recovery” plan, in which the country reinvests taxpayer dollars into our public infrastructure systems (i.e. road, tunnels, bridges, etc.) throughout the nation.

The Central Subway Project has consistently received a “medium high” overall rating and for project justification under the heavily scrutinized New Starts criteria for the past four years.  In fact, the project is tied for first place in the FTA’s 2012 Annual Report to Congress for transit projects and is on track to receive the $942 million Full Funding Grant Agreement (FFGA) by the end of 2011.

The federal funds allocated through the New Starts program cannot be redirected to offset other SFMTA funding deficiencies.

4. Opposition to the Central Subway in Chinatown and within the Asian community is growing. As San Francisco organizer David Tse puts it: “We are convinced that this [Central Subway] is more a developer’s dream than a transportation project. And they are using a flawed transportation analysis to make way for the wholesale alteration of everything along the route of the subway. If this project goes forward, I am especially worried over the irreversible impact on San Francisco’s historic and still vibrant Chinatown, where my sister and I grew up with many happy memories.”

Central Subway Response:

The Central Subway Project has received overwhelming support from more than 25 key stakeholders and community-based organizations in Chinatown, as well as other key organizations throughout the City such as the San Francisco Chamber of Commerce, the San Francisco Planning and Urban Research Association (SPUR), the Union Square Business Improvement District and others.  Over 8,000 signatures have been gathered directly in Chinatown from residents and merchants who support the project and await the days that they can actually ride the new line and cut their commute time in half.  The Chinatown community has supported this project for the past 20 years and has been the driving force behind it.

The Central Subway Project, in coordination with the City Planning Department, will not alter any existing planning ordinances or guidelines. One of the primary goals of the project is to preserve the character of this vibrant and historic neighborhood while helping it to flourish and thrive.

The Central Subway Project planners and engineers have designed the Chinatown station to be constructed by a mined method that will minimize the impacts and disruption at the surface while the station is being built.  This will allow for existing businesses to continue to operate and traffic to flow on Stockton Street while construction is ongoing.  There will be some inconveniences to the area, which is the case during most construction projects.  The boring of the twin tunnels will have virtually no impact to the surface and will never be seen in Chinatown.

Chinatown businesses including the Chinese Chamber of Commerce and community based organization Chinatown Community Development Center (CCDC) have consistently applauded the project as it will bring shoppers and tourists directly into the community.

5. On May 9, 2011, the 70,000 member Bay Chapter of the Sierra Club acknowledged new factors by passing a resolution encouraging the SFMTA to “pursue alternative uses of the state, regional and local funds programmed to the Central Subway but not yet spent.”

Central Subway Response:

The Central Subway Project will reduce air and noise pollution and use environmentally clean light rail vehicles.  The project will also enhance and preserve the environment by reducing traffic congestion on the street. Moreover, it satisfies the Federal Clean Air Act requirements.  This project is environmentally friendly and will improve the quality of life for San Franciscans. By making the City’s transit system more accessible and useful, the Central Subway as the completion of the T Third Light Rail Project, will help reduce the use of single occupancy vehicles.

Furthermore, the federal funds allocated for the Central Subway Project cannot be redirected to offset any SFMTA funding deficits. This information has been provided in all project materials and is common knowledge among transportation and governmental professionals.  If the Central Subway Project were to be stopped, the entire $942 million dollar contribution from the federal government would be redistributed to other New Starts projects throughout the nation under the New Starts program and the City would be no better off.  This would cost thousands of employment and local contracting opportunities at a time when they are much needed and derail the improvement of our public transit system.

To date the local, state, and federal governments have allocated and spent nearly $200 million dollars on the Central Subway Project.  By abandoning the project this would be a gross waste of taxpayer dollars and a waste of a once in a generation opportunity to improve San Francisco’s beloved transit system. Not only is San Francisco the city that can, it is also the city that cares. To abandon this project would mean that San Francisco would fail to fulfill promises made over the last 20 years by the entire city to the surrounding communities.

The Central Subway Project will continue on its path to be built on time and on budget!

An update of future Muni ridership by the San Francisco County Transportation Authority (SFCTA) and San Francisco Municipal Transportation Agency (SFMTA) has produced new 2030 estimates for the overall transit system and T Third line. The overall system is projected to attract six percent more daily Muni trips compared to the previous 2008 forecast, while T Third ridership projections have decreased from 76,000 to 65,000 boardings per day by the year 2030.

Much of the ridership change in the model is the result of numerous improvements to other routes in the Central Subway area that are expected from SFMTA’s Transit Effectiveness Project (TEP). The TEP is a substantial update to the transit network, including route alignment and service frequency changes that have been long planned or implemented. The TEP has an effect on the T Third line because it includes better alternative transfer points and connections for customers, particularly in SoMa between Caltrain and downtown. As one measure of the improvement, we found that within a half mile of the T Third, bus service could increase by 17% compared to the previous model.

The model is expected to fluctuate between now and the expected revenue service in 2018. With the influx of 10,000 planned housing units in the old Navy shipyard at Hunters Point and the dramatic growth in businesses and residential units in Mission Bay, thousands of additional people will depend on the T Third Line to connect to Caltrain, AT&T Park, Moscone Convention Center, Market Street/Union Square, Chinatown, and someday into North Beach and Fisherman’s Wharf.

The new forecast still places the Central Subway ridership at one of the highest levels of any existing or proposed light rail line in the United States. For example, the updated T-Third figure remains approximately 20 percent higher than comparable 2030 projections of N Judah ridership, Muni’s most active line, which operates over a similar total route length. The new forecast also places the T-Third ridership at a level higher per mile than most other light rail lines around the nation. See the chart below for more comparisons.

Despite the lower 2030 T Third Line estimate, total travel time savings due to the Central Subway Project have increased by 13 percent compared to the 2008 forecast. The TEP improvements will create faster connections from other Muni bus routes and rail lines for overall faster trips. They also provide more alternatives for customers who may have otherwise lost time due to the move of the T from Embarcadero to the Central Subway. The improvement of this overall metric of a project’s benefits confirms that the T-Third Central Subway project, Transit Effectiveness Project, and other Muni system advancements work together to provide a more robust, overall transit service to current and future customers in this Transit First City.

Nathaniel P. Ford Sr., SFMTA Executive Director/CEO

Mayor Gavin Newsom

Left to right: Nathaniel P. Ford Sr., SFMTA Board of Directors Chairman Tom Nolan, Mayor Gavin Newsom, Board of Supervisors President David Chiu, Supervisor Ross Mirkarimi

John Funghi, SFMTA Central Subway Senior Program Manager

Underneath the I-80 Freeway

Shovels

Photos Courtesy of: Anders Ryerson and Teddy Marasigan

A special thanks to our speakers!

• Nathaniel P. Ford Sr., SFMTA Executive Director/CEO
• Mayor Gavin Newsom
• President David Chiu, Board of Supervisors
• Chairman Ross Mirkarimi, San Francisco County Transportation Authority
• Dan Bernal, District Director, United States Congresswoman Nancy Pelosi, Speaker of the House
• Tom Nolan, Chairman, SFMTA Board of Directors
• Jose Luis Moscovich,  Executive Director, San Francisco County Transportation Authority
• Carolyn Diamond, Director, Market Street Association & Central Subway Community Advisory Group Member
• Gordon Chin, Executive Director, Chinatown Community Development Center
• Hoi Chong Wong, President, Community Tenants Association
• John Funghi, Senior Program Manager, SFMTA Central Subway Project

We hope 2009 treated you well!  As we look back on the Central Subway project a lot has happened in 2009, and we hope to bring you more exciting news in 2010. Here are some milestones achieved this year!

Presenting to Yerba Buena Alliance in Nov.

• Received a positive overall medium-high rating in the “New Starts” report.
• Awarded $9.9 million in additional funding by the FTA for advanced preliminary engineering and design work.
• Advertised three Final Design Request for Proposal packages and SFMTA Board awarded two Final Design Contract.
• Revamped the Central Subway website and launched the social media program.
• Advertised and awarded Moscone Station and Tunnel Portal Utility Relocation contract.

We want to thank all of our supporters including our followers and fans on Twitter and Facebook! We look forward to 2010 when we begin the Utility Relocation for the future Moscone Station and Portal Tunnel.  Stay tuned!

Happy Holidays and have a safe New Year!

1)       Why will it take a 5 minute transfer to exit and reenter the fare gates, in the same system, from the Powell Street Station to the UMS Station for a 2 minute ride to Chinatown?

The Union Square/Market Street Station (UMS) will have a connection to the Powell Street Station.  It might take a little time to transfer, but all connections and transfers are within the underground mezzanine level.  The illustrated diagram of the UMS/Powell Street Station connection indicates that the walk will be short.
Traveling on the subway by going either direction will reduce travel time and it will bypass surface congestion on Stockton Street.

2)       What are the benefits of taking the bus from North Beach and transferring to the T line in Chinatown, and would surface buses disappear when Central Subway begins service?

The benefit of taking the subway or transferring is that it reduces travel time.  Surface buses will have more frequent stops and they will continue to operate along the route in order to accommodate shorter distance travelers, whereas the light rail tunnel operation will serve those traveling longer distances.  Muni customers will have the option to take surface buses or subway to their desired destination.  Similar to what our patrons currently experience on Market Street. The surface buses will not disappear.

To the Editor:

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

Why not opt for shallower & more accessible tunnels?

We intend for this blog to serve as a forum for open communication with Muni customers and public transit enthusiasts, so we welcome your questions and encourage feedback.  For the latest Central Subway news and updates, check back often (or subscribe to the blog) and connect with us on Facebook and Twitter. If you’re not familiar with the project, we’ve outlined the basics below.  If you need more information, check out our updated Web site or leave us a comment.

The Central Subway

The Central Subway, a San Francisco Municipal Transportation Agency (SFMTA) project, is a rail restoration initiative that will reinstate a north/south rail connection for the City. Up until 1951, San Francisco enjoyed north/south rail service in the early 1900’s, similar to the east/west subway on Market Street that we use today.

A critical transportation improvement, the Central Subway links neighborhoods in the southeastern part of San Francisco with the

retail and employment centers downtown and in Chinatown, and will provide much needed and improved transportation service to an under-served portion of the City.  Fifty percent of the residents along the entire T Third line are without access to a vehicle and that number jumps to sixty percent for the residents along the Central Subway corridor.  The bus routes (30, 45 and 9x – the 9x is scheduled to become 8x in December) currently serving Chinatown are overcrowded and the corridor is severely congested.  The Central Subway will reduce surface congestion and provide faster service between Caltrain and Chinatown.

Project Funding

The total project cost (with contingency) is expected to be $1.57 billion, with the federal government contributing close to $1 billion that would otherwise not likely be invested in San Francisco.  The funding breakdown by source follows:

• Federal contribution: $948.4 million
• State contribution: $342 million
• Local contribution: $287.9 million

The federal funding comes from the Federal Transit Administration’s (FTA) New Starts program, and these funds can only be allocated to the designated project.

Timeline

The current timeline is:

• Early 2010                 FTA Entry into Final Design approval
• Early 2010                 Begin Construction – Utilities Relocation
• 2009 – 2013              Final Design
• Spring 2012               Full Funding Grant Agreement
• 2010 – 2017              Construction
• 2018                          Begin Service

We want to hear from you.

Seriously, we really want to hear from you!  Please contact us with any questions:

• Visit our web site (www.sfmta.com/central)
• Connect with us online: Twitter (@Central_Subway) and Facebook
• Email Central <dot> Subway @ sfmta <dot> com with specific questions
• Call the project information hotline: 415-701-4371
• Attend the Community Advisory Group’s (CAG) quarterly meetings
• Mailing address: Central Subway Project Office, 821 Howard Street, San Francisco, CA 94103