The Plans and Program Committee.
SAN FRANCISCO HAS NO SOUND TRANSPORTATION DOCUMENT (12/15/06)
|
In San Francisco time and time again at the SF Planning Commission, the Land Use and Economic Development committee meetings, at the SF County Transportation meetings - it is common to hear that San Francisco is a Transit First City.
We might be a Transit First City but we have no sound document more from the SF Planning Department that lays down the mandates to make our City a first class Transit First City. Again and again our City falls prey to San Francisco County Transportation Authority (SFCTA) that has hood winked the constituents of San Francisco. The best way to gauge the SFCTA is to follow the large projects and the mandates given to it by the Metropolitan Transportation Commission (MTC) and the Department of Transportation (DOT). On the 3rd Street MUNI Lightrail Project the SFCTA has failed miserably. This over $700 million project is 3 years behind the project dead line. It is over $40 million over budget and the system will fail because the two bridges one at 3rd and Cargo and the other at 4th and King have no standards and will fail in the short run. The SFCTA will come out with excuses, the Chair of the Plans and Programs will wag his tail, the Chair of the SFCTA Commission will spew his diatribe but in the end these scum bags have failed the constituents of San Francisco - time and time again. One has just to attend the meetings and follow the proceedings at every level. The Citizens Advisory Committee (CAC) to the SFCTA rubber stamps the CAC deliberations. This has been going on for years. There was this incident of one CAC member Fran Martin missing four meetings and contributing practically nothing linked to the 3rd Street MUNI Lightrail. Not once did this inept person attend a single SFCTA committee meeting to contribute any evaluation linked to the over $700 million MUNI Lightrail project. $40 million is over runs above budget. As a representative of District 10 on the CAC the least Fran Martin could have done is brought the misdeeds of this project to the attention of the public at large. But as happens with any crony put there by Sophie Maxwell the inept, ignorant, and very arrogant District 10 Supervisor and some SFCTA Commissioners - nothing good comes. Why would anyone appoint a candidate like Fran Martin to a second term when she failed miserably the first time? Well, the constituents must figure that and this reflection is more on the despicable behavior of those that serve on the SFCTA Plans and Programs committee and especially its chair Bevan Dufty. A very queer situation. The Bicycle Coalition boasts that it has thousands of members. It is a far cry from the early days when it was formed. Today, it has a Political Action Committee and contributes money to the Supervisors and other politicians to gain favor. The Bicycle Coalition has invaded our roads putting hundreds in harms way. All over the City bicycle lanes have been marked without any meaningful input from the residents that live in the neighborhood. It is simply wrong to put innocent folks riding bicycles in harms way. Without a sound Environmental Impact Report and without following the mandates laid down in the SF City's General Plan the Bicycle Coalition with funding from SFCTA chose to undermine our City roads and traffic. This action on the part of SFCTA speaks volumes and the judge that stopped the Bicycle Coalition in its tracks with an injunction points directly in the direction of the SFCTA authorities on every level. The SFCTA Commissioners may think they can look the other way but the fact is that on their watch - the Bicycle Coalition continues to address "bike lanes" for the past 16 months with little progress. Very few constituents of San Francisco go before the various SFCTA committees - a case in point the Plans and Programs. However, when some of us go we are not respected by the scum bags that prefer to talk among themselves rather then listen to the public at Public Comment. This nonsense must stop at once and if it does not some higher investigation leading to the waste of millions on projects is called for. Also, the denial of Public Comment in an environment that is conducive to Public Comment at these meetings must be monitored. The Metropolitan Transportation Commission (MTC) permits the San Francisco County Transportation Authority (SFCTA) to deal with Land Use issues and spend wisely the appropriations on the local level. If one conducts a through study of the key project Doyle Drive, MUNI Light Rail, the Central Freeway changes in toto - the SFCTA gets a minus F. It is common for large sums of money to be approved with little or no discussion. It is common for the Director of the SFCTA to have lengthy discussions with some of the Supervisors behind close doors trying to cover up mistakes and waste of tax payers money in the millions. Consultants make millions and it is mostly an inside job. Now and then some dubious dealing will be revealed in public to the embarrassment of the SFCTA. It is over two years now that I requested a full report on the 3 conduits at Pier 80 under the Force Main that was compromised partially funded by SFCTA. I was promised a report - by the man that chases his tail but to date I have seen nothing. The man talks the talk but cannot walk the walk - he sits as Chair on the Plans and Programs committee linked to the SFCTA. Sophie Maxwell has no clue what is happening with 3rd Street MUNI Lightrail. Can you imagine spending $700 million on a project and not having in place trained Lightrail Operators? Only a dumb, inept, stupid, very arrogant person like Sophie Maxwell would accomplish just a feat. Time to recall this scum bag the sooner the better. It is time the Metropolitan Transportation Commission (MTA) the Department of Transportation (DPT) initiates an investigation into the dubious dealings prevailing at the San Francisco County Transportation Authority. I have paid my dues attending the Citizens Advisory Committee meetings where practically everything is rubber stamped. Then one makes at attempt to attend the meetings such as the Plans and Programs only to disrespected by some air heads and idiots that purport to know that they are capable of understanding complicated engineering and transportation issues. San Francisco in indeed a Transit First City but to date we have no sound Transportation Document initiated and produced by the San Francisco Planning Department. San Francisco can boast of a sound Transit First City if we have intelligent people that can address the issues at hand. For sure we cannot make any sound plans less take leadership as long as we have idiots like those that sit on the Plans and Program committee linked to the SFCTA. |
