[Rescue Muni] Re: Ferry Terminal Hotel
Peter D. Ehrlich (norcalrr@sprynet.com)
Thu, 18 Feb 1999 06:54:01 -0800
In a message dated 17 Feb 99 at 4:35am, Robert Parks <rparks@linnaeus.com>
wrote:
>
>Subject: Ferry Terminal Hotel
>
>my response could be summed up by one word: `ARGH!'
>
>There is no particular reason why a hotel at that location is a bad
>thing, AS LONG AS it is built on AIR-RIGHTS over a terminal. The F is
>already to have a stop there, there is space for a 4-6 lane bus
>terminal, 2 lane auto circulator for the hotel, and a lobby with
>escalators for the hotel (main lobby 20 feet above grade) on the corner
>of Mission and Steuart, but little or no street level amenities/stores.
>
>Dispersing terminal (Muni) traffic is a BAD THING...causing
>inconvenience to passengers, Muni drivers, auto/truck drivers, not to
>mention the loss of parking spaces and increased congestion. For a
>fairly small annual yield $300K-400K (this from the rosy cheeked
>initial report...imagine how much it will COST Muni a year by the time
>it actually happens). Muni should try to make travel More Convenient,
>and connections easier to make, even if it costs money.
>
>Imagine a Ferry Terminal with signed boading islands for the F, 2, 6, 7,
>9, 14, 14L, 14X, 21, 31, 66, 71...with or without a hotel above it.
>Certainly it is now an barren asphalt parking lot with operator
>bathrooms, but hundreds of buses a day travel across it, reason enough
>to keep it. If all that matters is the bottom line, perhaps they should
>fire the people who are selling Muni's operating birthright for a pot of
>tin...most likely they could realize an actual savings equal or greater
>than that derived from the hotel deal...all the benefits, with none of
>the consequences.
>
>Robert Parks
>time to go back to bed before I get really mad!
This is one of those things where Muni saw dollar signs before really
thinking out the consequences of their actions. They never had a good plan
for relocating the terminal stop to begin with. First they were going to
route all the trolley coaches to the vicinity of Folsom and Spear, where
Golden Gate Transit parks their buses during midday. This was presumably
as a replacement for Transbay Terminal. Diesel bus lines, such as the
9-San Bruno, 14-Mission Limited, 2-Clement and 71-Haight/Noriega would loop
south of the Ferry Building. This idea was rightfully bashed by Rescue
Muni and others as being in an inconvenient location, too far away for
seamless interline transit transfers, etc. Then they decided to make the
terminal for all buses using the full length of Steuart Street's west curb.
The problem with this is it removes parking and truck loading space, faces
all the buses southward where they have to take 2-5 minutes to get back to
Market Street, where people want to go.
Tuesday's Examiner stated that in the planners' minds, "everyone will take
the F-Market streetcar", so the need for a proper bus terminal is lessened.
Hogwash! And isn't it convenient that the developer selected for this has
Doug Wright, the perpetrator of this hoax, on its board as an "adviser"?
No, gang, this project has to be derailed before ground is broken for the
first column boring. This is TRANSPORTATION PLANNING AT ITS WORST!
Peter Ehrlich