Community Living Campaign

Cultivating connections to help seniors and people with disabilities age and thrive at home.

Cultivating connections to help seniors and people with disabilities age and thrive at home.

Cathy DeLuca

Passage of Prop L Is Vital for Older Adults and People with Disabilities!

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If Prop L doesn’t pass, San Francisco’s Paratransit Programs will lose over 30% of their funding!

Did you know that San Francisco’s existing ½ cent transportation sales tax is one of the largest funding sources for the city’s Paratransit programs, including ADA Paratransit, the Essential Trip Card, and Van Gogh? Last year, the half-cent sales tax provided 32% of the funding needed to run the Paratransit programs – programs that give older adults and people with disabilities the ability to travel to vital services and activities independently. Without this funding, our communities will suffer. But you can do something to make sure that doesn’t happen! You can vote “yes” on Prop L.

Passage of Prop L would renew our transportation sales tax, ensuring that Paratransit retains its baseline funding. Not only that, but thanks to the work of advocates, the new Proposition ensures that Paratransit programs get an even bigger percentage of the sales tax revenue, without raising taxes. This will ensure that Paratransit not only meets current and increased demand, but that important programs like the Essential Trip Card and Van Gogh shuttles can continue.

Paratransit isn’t the only reason it’s important that we pass Prop L, though. The renewed transportation sales tax will fund other important improvements, including sidewalk curb ramps, audible pedestrian countdown signals, and upgraded and new BART and Muni elevators and escalators.

Your vote matters! In June 2022, a funding measure for Muni failed by an extremely narrow margin. We can’t let that happen to Prop L, or we’ll see a rapid decline in transportation service in the city, and a crisis in Paratransit service.

Vote Yes on Prop L!

For more information on Prop L, see San Francisco’s November 8, 2022 Voter Information Pamphlet.

Essential Trip Card: Your Questions Answered

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Woman on a bench, wearing a mask, holding up an Essential Trip CardMany of you are signed up for the Essential Trip Card — a great low-cost taxi program for seniors (65+) and people with disabilities in San Francisco. We get a lot of questions about the card, so we wanted to share some common questions and answers here.

Q: When is the program ending? My card has an expiration date of 12/31/22.
A: The City has funding for the program through at least June 2023. Don’t worry about the expiration date. They do not send new cards, so just keep using yours!

Q: Can I use the card to go to my doctor in Daly City?
A: Unfortunately, no. The card can only be used for trips within San Francisco.

Q: How do I know how much money is on my card?
A: You can check your balance 24 hours a day using the City’s automated system: 877-738-2941.

Q: The receipt from my last trip says I only have $75 on my card, but I thought I had more money than that on there.
A: If you have more than $75 on your card, your receipt will only show a balance of “$75+.” So don’t worry! And remember, you can always call to check your balance (see question above).

Q: The $60 monthly limit doesn’t cover the cost of my essential trips. What can I do?
A: You can call the City and ask for an increase in your monthly allotment: 415-351-7053. An increase isn’t guaranteed, and CLC may not be able to cover the full amount if you do get the increase. But many people have had their monthly cap raised.

Q: The driver said the card reader couldn’t read my card, and I had to pay out of pocket. Is that how it’s supposed to work?
A: No! You should never have to pay out of pocket if you have money on your card. If you are sure you have enough money on the card but the card reader won’t read your card, the driver is supposed to fill out a manual receipt. Then they call an authorization number to confirm the charge, and you should be good to go!

Q: If I don’t have enough money on the card to cover the trip I’m on, can I use up the amount on the card and pay the balance with cash or another card?
A: Yes! A taxi driver shouldn’t reject your card if it doesn’t contain enough funds for the trip you’re taking. But you are obligated to pay the rest of the fare yourself.

Q: Should I tip the taxi driver?
A: Yes! You can tip up to 15% of the fare using the Essential Trip Card. If you have the means and the desire to go above 15%, you can use cash for the rest of the tip.

We hope these answers have been helpful. If you have a question we didn’t cover, feel free to contact CLC’s Transportation Program team at 415-821-1003, ext. 125.

For more information about the Essential Trip Card, visit www.sfmta.com/etc.

Speak Up For The MUNI Services You Need!

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SPEAK UP FOR THE MUNI SERVICE YOU NEED!

On December 7, the SFMTA Board of Directors will vote on a Muni Service Plan for 2022. Their current proposal brings back a lot of service, but it does not restore Muni to pre-pandemic service levels, as the community has been asking for. The current proposal for 2022 Service includes the following:

  • The 3 Jackson and 47 Van Ness would remain suspended.
  • The 2 Clement would be restored with a modified route and would operate every 15 minutes all day on weekdays.
  • The 6 Haight/Parnassus would return every 20 minutes, and the 52 Excelsior and 66 Quintara would return to their past routes.
  • The 10 Townsend would be restored, but it would end at Sansome and Montgomery streets and run along 16th Street in Potrero Hill.
  • The 21 Hayes would be restored with a modified route and would run every 15 minutes.
  • The 31 Balboa would be rerouted to 5th Street, Townsend Street, 3rd Street and Harrison Street, with a terminal at the 4th and King Caltrain Station.

More details here.

Please ACT BEFORE DECEMBER 7 if this is not the Muni service you need!

  1. Call 415-646-2005
  2. Email TellMuni@sfmta.com and MTABoard@sfmta.com (cc your Supervisor and cathy@sfcommunityliving.org)

 

JOIN SDA’S CAMPAIGN FOR BUS SHELTERS: GIMME SHELTER!

From our partners at Senior & Disability Action: For years, the San Francisco Municipal Transportation Agency (SFMTA) has been denying requests from neighborhood public transit riders to install a bus shelter with seating at bus stops that are without seats. Prior to the pandemic, the SFMTA has been removing numerous bus shelters as a solution to deal with the homeless and street drug trafficking issues. We at Senior & Disability Action find that those actions are in conflict with the Americans with Disabilities Act. People with disabilities and seniors need seating and shelter while waiting for the next bus. At this time, only 34% of current bus stops have seating, and these are distributed inequitably, with the northern half of the city twice as likely to have shelters as the southern half, particularly Bayview/Hunters Point.SFMTA really needs our (transit riders who are seniors and people with impairments) help in creating a Muni Service Network that really addresses our needs.

SDA has developed a survey and petition for the new Gimme Shelter campaign. The task of both is communicate to the SFMTA the need for all bus stops to have a shelter with seating. Please take and share with others:

The Survey
English: https://tinyurl.com/Gimme-Shelter-Survey
Chinese: https://forms.gle/1UCFGrheqXfdbEqc7
Spanish: https://forms.gle/deT4ZWP1v8AngZGY8

The Petition
English: https://forms.gle/bJqUsRpTYyCAPFEJ8
Chinese: https://forms.gle/QgExKtE5xXSWEoAMA
Spanish: https://forms.gle/YRNffsyUPGiK6G7s9

If you’d like a hard copy of the survey and petition, please contact Pi Ra at srira@sdaction.org.

HOW SHOULD THE CITY SPEND TRANSPORTATION SALES TAX REVENUE?

San Francisco has a half-cent sales tax that funds transportation projects. The City plans to renew the sales tax soon, so it’s currently developing a spending plan for the expected revenues. The spending plan doesn’t identify specific transportation projects to fund, but rather outlines the percentage of tax revenue that will be dedicated to different transportation program categories.To help develop this spending plan, the City is asking the public to share feedback on what transportation programs are most important to them.
 
Take the SFCTA survey to make your voice heard:
https://www.research.net/r/transportation-sales-tax
 

CLC is urging residents to mark the following programs as “Very Important,” so we make sure that older adults and adults with disabilities are prioritized:

  • Paratransit Service for Seniors and Persons with Disabilities
  • Neighborhood and Equity Priority Community Planning

More details at https://www.sfcta.org/ExpenditurePlan.

MARK YOUR CALENDARS!

Dec 6 @ 1:30 pm; Land Use & Transportation Committee
Supervisor Peskin is calling a hearing on electric-powered scooters, after Nicole Bohn, the Director of the Mayor’s Office on Disability, was seriously injured after being hit by someone riding a scooter on a sidewalk.

Dec 13 @ 1:30 pm: Land Use & Transportation Committee
Supervisor Melgar is calling a hearing on the City’s responsibilities in maintaining safe and accessible sidewalks, as well as being accountable to public requests for sidewalk improvements. We’ll keep you updated, or stay tuned here: https://sfbos.org/meetings/land-use-and-transportation-committee.

LOWER SPEED LIMITS COMING TO SF STREETS

Thanks to a new state law, San Francisco now has more authority to set speed limits on our streets! That’s great news, since speed is a major factor in whether someone hit by a car lives or dies. Considering that older adults make up half of all pedestrians killed in San Francisco each year, lower speed limits could help us reduce this number.As early as January 2022, the SFMTA will lower speed limits by 5 mph (from 25 mph to 20 mph, or 30 mph to 25 mph) in key business activity districts (streets where at least half of the property uses are dining or retail). These speed limit changes require SFMTA Board approval, and the first seven corridors being brought to the Board for speed limit reductions from 25 to 20 mph include:

  • 24th Street, from Diamond to Chattanooga streets and from Valencia to San Bruno Avenue;
  • Fillmore Street, from Chestnut to Union streets and from Jackson to McAllister streets;
  • Haight Street, from Stanyan Street to Central Avenue and from Webster to Steiner streets;
  • Polk Street, from Filbert to Sutter streets;
  • Ocean Avenue, from Geneva Avenue to Victoria Street and from Junipero Serra Boulevard to 19th Avenue;
  • San Bruno Avenue, from Silver to Paul avenues; and
  • Valencia Street, from Cesar Chavez to Market streets

The SFMTA also plans to reduce speed limits on San Francisco’s high-injury corridors, where most traffic crashes are concentrated. You can learn more here about all the important speed limit changes that SFMTA is planning. In the meantime, let’s all slow down!

For more information about any of these transportation updates, please contact CLC’s Transportation Program Manager: Cathy DeLuca, cathy@sfcommunityliving.org, 415-638-9183.

The New Year Brings New Muni Service Increases

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We know that getting around San Francisco is hard right now, with Muni cuts and with COVID. But the great news is that Muni is increasing service in January! Last year’s resumption of the J Church train, which can carry more riders than the substitution bus, freed up drivers and buses for other routes. Here are the increases that will take effect on Saturday, January 23rd:

Trains:
  • The T Third line will resume service, running from Sunnydale to Embarcadero.
  • (The J Church began service last year. All other Metro lines are running as buses.)

Buses:

New Bayview-Hunters Point 15 Express

  • The eastern segment of the 22 Fillmore route is shifting to serve Mission Bay. (The new 55 Dogpatch—details below—will cover the 22’s previous route to Potrero Hill and Dogpatch.)
  • The 27 Bryant will resume with a modified route, with service between the Mission and Russian Hill.
  • The 33 Ashbury-18th Street will resume (full route).
  • The 37 Corbett will go from a shortened route back to a full route.
  • NEW ROUTE! The new 55 Dogpatch will be added between 16th and Mission and 20th and 3rd to replace the eastern segment of the 22 Fillmore.
  • NEW ROUTE! The new 15 Bayview-Hunters Point Express will connect the city’s southeastern areas with downtown. Read more in this Examiner article.

Visit the SFMTA website for all the details.