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.

transportation

Essential Trip Card: Your Questions Answered

by

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!

by

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.

Community Connector Networks Seek Safe & Accessible Transportation

by

The Community Living Campaign is  submitting a proposal to Supervisor Myrna Melgar and the Participatory Budget Process in Supervisor District 7.   The goal is to improve safe and accessible transportation options for older adults and adults with disabilities in our District 7 Community Connector neighborhoods and beyond. Those networks got started as a partnership between CLC and neighborhood leaders and garnered the support of Supervisor Norman Yee. CLC has been able to continue and stabilize the funding for these networks since the initial start-up funds through the Participatory Budget process and since Supervisor Yee initiated add backs in the City Budget process.  

With the pandemic and increasing challenges related to transportation, especially for those on the Southwest part of the City, we are looking to expand our transportation efforts in a focused effort to bring more  transportation resource to these networks. Knowing how challenging transportation can be for seniors and adults with disabilities, Community Living Campaign launched a Transportation Support program in January of 2020. The goal of our program remains connecting neighborhood residents with free and low-cost transportation options, as well as empower residents to navigate the transportation system and advocate for the services they need.  We have started to provide services to residents of District 7: 

  • Awarded 30 Essential Trip Card subsidies for free taxi rides
  • Awarded 58 free Lyft vouchers
  • Provided free transportation to vaccine appointments for 8 residents

CLC has enjoyed consistent support for the work of our community connector networks and believe this project will strengthen what already exists, as described below by leaders in our Community Connector networks. 

Midtown Terrace Community Connector, Evernease Cook, Community Advocate

Anytime a neighborhood strengthens relationships with older adults, it’s a stronger community. Our connector program mattered greatly during the pandemic. So many of our seniors felt isolated —several live alone and depended on the Connector program for updates and information; it provided events, like walking and waving, which gave them something to look forward to. On one of our walks, we visited the Fire House (285 Olympia Way) to thank them for being there for us. I had my 9 year-old grand-daughter with me, and the fire fighters let her try on a fire hat and let us take as many photos we wanted.  They were so glad to meet people in the neighborhood, we created a bond. 

Merced Extension Triangle – Marc Christensen, President of METNA

I fully endorse and encourage connector programs across the district; as District 7 works to strengthen our neighborhood resilience program a connector program would loop in our senior population (like Sunnyside, Midtown Terrace and Miraloma Park). In this last pandemic year, METNA had more knowledge and relationships with our seniors because of the Connector program allowing us to help with food security and distribution of PPE and sharing important information and updates.

Sunnyside Community Connectors, Alice Guidry, Community Advocate

The CLC Community Connector Program is successful in the Sunnyside community. We have been able to better synchronize our Sunnyside Neighborhood Association (SNA) with our seniors. For example, when the Sunnyside Community Connectors were planning a Fair Safety and Emergency Preparedness Fair with SF FD (and other safety organizations) — they promoted to our entire community via the SNA newsletter and flyers. Using SF FD demo, our seniors learned how to operate a fire extinguisher—we were so grateful, as they feared having to use it. This is important safety fair  brought our community together.

Darlene Ramlose, Miraloma Park

Community Connectors of Miraloma Park and MPIC (Miraloma Park Improvement Club) joined forces to advise Supervisor Melgar and the SMFTA of the importance of providing service of the 36/52 bus line in order to serve the entire community of those who travel to work or play using this bus line, especially our seniors who rallied to support the request as many of them use the 36/52 on a regular basis to get around the City.

Eileen Picaro, Resident in Glen Park
 

CLC Connector’s program has given me great support. I never feel alone because I know they’re there. All I have to do is make a phone call, and they’re willing to help out in anyway they can. I have benefited from their resources. Making sure I have meals and fresh vegetables and fruits. They send little cards on special days.  They let you know we’re loved and not forgotten. First time in my life I feel I have connections, and what a comfort that is. Making friends with other folks the same as me. Keeping us informed. What a relief that was during and still is concerning Covid-19. They have a lot of different programs to get involved with. I have especially benefited from their writing classes, and exercise classes. I’ve gotten much from special speakers, such as on Hypertension, diabetes, and other subjects.

 

 

How To Advocate for the Transportation Services You Need! (Virtual)

by

Now that all the transportation changes in San Francisco seem to be slowing down, it’s time to advocate for what we need to get around safely, accessibly, and affordably. Maybe you used to rely on Free Muni, but now the bus closest to your home isn’t running anymore. Maybe you can’t get to the doctor because the bus you used to take has a shorter route. Maybe COVID is making you nervous to travel the way you used to. Join Cathy DeLuca from Community Living Campaign to learn all the ways you can let the City know about your transportation needs. She’ll help you understand how to navigate San Francisco’s main transportation agency (the SFMTA), as well as all the different ways you can take action to get the attention of the decision-makers.

To join by phone, dial 888-475-4499 (toll free) or 669-900-6833 (local).
Enter Meeting ID: 862 4791 1544 and Passcode: 204674.

To join with video, click this link: https://us02web.zoom.us/w/86247911544 to register and join. Wait in the “waiting room” until the activity is ready to start.

To create a friendly environment and minimize interruptions, we will close the activity to new participants 15 minutes after the start time.

The above link will work on your tablet or your computer. You’ll be prompted to download a Zoom app the first time you use Zoom. If you’re using a PC or Mac, you can join from your web browser without using the Zoom software.

How to Get Around San Francisco Safely During COVID-19 (Virtual)

by

Getting around San Francisco is challenging for seniors and people with disabilities in the best of times, but during the COVID crisis, it’s hard to keep track of what the options are.

We are here to help! Join Cathy DeLuca from CLC to hear the latest about all your transportation options, including Muni, Paratransit, the Essential Trip Card, driving, taxis and Uber/Lyft, and even how to have fun on your local walks! Cathy will be joined by Natasha Opfell from SF Paratransit’s Mobility Management Center and Phillip Pierce from the SFMTA who will be able to answer questions about city transportation services.

Registration is required:

Captioning will be provided. To request other disability-related accommodations, or to obtain a printed or digital version of event materials, please contact us at (415) 638-9183 or cathy@sfcommunityliving.org. Providing at least 72 hours’ notice will help us make accommodations to the greatest extent possible.

How to Get Around San Francisco Safely During COVID-19

by

Getting around San Francisco is challenging for seniors and people with disabilities in the best of times, but during the COVID crisis, it’s hard to keep track of what the options are.

We are here to help! Join Cathy DeLuca from CLC to hear the latest about all your transportation options, including Muni, Paratransit, the Essential Trip Card, driving, taxis and Uber/Lyft, and even how to have fun on your local walks! Cathy will be joined by Natasha Opfell from SF Paratransit’s Mobility Management Center and Phillip Pierce from the SFMTA who will be able to answer questions about city transportation services.

You must register in advance for this meeting:

Captioning will be provided. To request other disability-related accommodations, or to obtain a printed or digital version of event materials, please contact us at (415) 638-9183 or cathy@sfcommunityliving.org. Providing at least 72 hours’ notice will help us make accommodations to the greatest extent possible.

Traveling Safely During COVID-19 (Virtual)

by

Getting around San Francisco is challenging for seniors and people with disabilities in the best of times, but during the COVID crisis, it’s hard to keep track of what the options are.

We are here to help! Join Cathy DeLuca from CLC to hear the latest about all your transportation options, including Muni, Paratransit, driving, taxis and Uber/Lyft, and even how to have fun on your local walks! Cathy will be joined by Natasha Opfell from SF Paratransit’s Mobility Management Center and Phillip Pierce from the SFMTA who will be able to answer questions about city transportation services.

You must register for this meeting:

Captioning will be provided. To request other disability-related accommodations, or to obtain a printed or digital version of event materials, please contact us at (415) 638-9183 or cathy@sfcommunityliving.org. Providing at least 72 hours’ notice will help us make accommodations to the greatest extent possible.

Traveling Safely During COVID-19 (Virtual)

by

While we’re all doing our best to shelter-in-place, some of us need to travel to get to work, to get groceries, to access medical care, or to provide help to others. But how can we keep track of options for getting around the city when things seem to change every day?

We are here to help! Join Cathy DeLuca from CLC to hear the latest about all your transportation options, including Muni, Paratransit, driving, taxis and Uber/Lyft, and even how to have fun on your local walks! Cathy will be joined by Natasha Opfell from SF Paratransit’s Mobility Management Center and Phillip Pierce from the SFMTA who will be able to answer questions about city transportation services.

Sponsored by the Department of Disability and Aging Services.

You must register in advance for this meeting:

Captioning will be provided. To request other disability-related accommodations, or to obtain a printed or digital version of event materials, please contact us at (415) 638-9183 or cathy@sfcommunityliving.org. Providing at least 72 hours’ notice will help us make accommodations to the greatest extent possible.

SF Sidewalk Search Party Meeting (Virtual)

by

Join the SF Sidewalk Search Party’s regular meeting to learn about how we can work together to make our sidewalks safer and more accessible.

We are meeting virtually.

To call in, dial 888-475-4499 (toll free) or 669-900-6833 (local)
You’ll be prompted to enter Meeting ID: 843 0592 8582, then press # and wait for the activity to start.

To join with video, click this link: https://us02web.zoom.us/j/84305928582 and wait in the “waiting room” until the activity is ready to start.

Getting Around During Super Bowl 50

by

As CLC started planning for meetings and events  over the next few weeks, it became clear how much Super Bowl 50 may impact our work and travel plans.  So as a public service, we are passing along the information below provided by the Metropolitan Transit Agency (MTA). 

The Bay Area is hosting Super Bowl 50! While the game is in Santa Clara, nine days of activities leading up to the game will be in San Francisco. That means transportation impacts from January 23 to February 12. Whether you’re visiting, working or a resident, plan ahead, pack your patience and take transit, bike or walk where you need to go.

About Super Bowl 50

Artist rendering of Super Bowl 50 Super Bowl City on Market Street  San Francisco activity revolves around two events:

With set-up and take-down, transportation impacts may extend from January 23 – February 12, with these dates subject to change.

Visit sfbaysuperbowl.com for information on Super Bowl City, the Super Bowl 50 Host Committee’s free public fan village in San Francisco, or information related to Super Bowl Week activities happening January 30 through February 7, 2016. The Super Bowl 50 game will be at Levi’s® Stadium in Santa Clara on Sunday, February 7.

We are working closely with the Super Bowl 50 Host Committee and our regional transit partners to ensure that commuters, visitors and locals can get where they need to go as safely and as easily as possible.

Stay Up-to-Date

Many agencies and departments are working hard to finalize the transportation details for this exciting event. Make sure you have access to the latest information.

  1. Sign up to get updates sent directly to your inbox.
  2. What’s your usual travel mode? Jump straight to that section:
  3. Follow our blog, MovingSF, for regular in-depth updates and to leave comments or questions. 
  4. Follow us on Twitter: @sfmta_muni
  5. Visit sfgov.org/sb50 San Francisco’s landing page for event info and resources.
  6. Bookmark 511.org for regional trip planning.
  7. Register for AlertSF, San Francisco’s official text message and e-mail alert system for emergencies or disruptions. Register by texting “AlertSF” to 888-777 from your mobile device a or visiting AlertSF.org.

For more details, visit https://www.sfmta.com/sb50.