February Meeting, Congestion Pricing, & Bay Bridge Bus Lanes

This month, there is an opportunity to hear from the SFCTA on congestion pricing, and  an effort to reintroduce bus lanes on the Bay Bridge that transit riders are organizing for.

Learn about Congestion Pricing from the SFCTA

For Urban Environmentalist's next meeting on February 3, we will be hosting the San Francisco County Transportation Authority, who will be presenting their Downtown Congestion Pricing Study and Congestion Management Program efforts. The program will begin at about 6:30 with a 20 minute presentation followed by Q&A.

The SFCTA describe the benefits of Congestion Pricing on their project website:

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Congestion in San Francisco has reached record levels. A rising population and job growth—combined with a growing presence of ride-hail vehicles—has resulted in clogged streets, particularly downtown and in SoMa. This impacts not only people who are traveling, but also the surrounding residents’ quality of life, safety, and health, and disproportionately affects low income communities of color.

San Francisco has done a lot of work to reduce congestion: from adding transit-only lanes to our streets, to implementing street safety measures that make it easier to walk and bike, to taxing ride-hail trips to support transit, walking, and biking.
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While these efforts are helping, they are not enough.

Without action, gridlock is projected to get worse: Between now and 2040, the city is expected to add another 200,000 new residents and 150,000 new jobs.

​Please RSVP here. If you want to participate remotely, please let us know and we will send you the info to join.

Bay Bridge Bus Lanes

Urban Environmentalists are also joining with other groups in organizing to bring bus lanes back to the Bay Bridge. Arielle Fleisher, transportation policy director for SPUR, sets out the case in the SF Chronicle:

Now is the time for action on transit efficiency across the Bay Bridge and beyond. Climate change is nearing the point of no return. Passenger vehicles are the single greatest source of carbon emissions produced in the Bay Area and California. Too many neighborhoods, particularly those traditionally housing vulnerable communities, have been hurt by the volume of cars pouring onto and off of highways. We have a governor who is serious about delivering on climate goals. BART and AC Transit are in agreement that our regional express buses can and need to do more. This is the moment to forge the state, regional and transit partnerships necessary to demonstrate great freeway- and bridge-based bus solutions.
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The region’s bridges and freeways can go from frustrating to functional. They can serve many more transit riders with one simple change: transit-only lanes on the Bay Bridge.

 If you would like to get involved, please reach out to us!