Powered Scooter Share Program Update

Powered Scooter Share Program Update
By Philip Cranna

On Friday, August 13, 2021, the SFMTA granted Scoot a permit to operate a shared power scooter share system in San Francisco.  Scoot’s permit comes in addition to the two 12-month permits previously granted to Lime and Spin on July 1st.

Scooters are a sustainable mode of travel and a complement to Muni and public transit service. The SFMTA’s Powered Scooter Share Program ensures that shared scooter operations support the City’s recovery in a safe, sustainable, and equitable way. We take seriously permittees’ adherence to the permit terms and conditions, which are crafted to ensure private mobility options best contribute to the public welfare of the City.

SFMTA’s decision on Scoot’s permit

In June 2021, SFMTA temporarily deferred the decision to grant a permit to Scoot in order to investigate their compliance with the 2019 permit terms and conditions after learning that Scoot had been operating with unauthorized and inadequately insured contractors in violation of the 2019 permit program terms.

After taking into consideration this new information, SFMTA staff completed a careful re-evaluation of Scoot's application, and determined that the company has qualified for a permit to operate.

The final application scores for Lime, Spin, and Scoot are all within 1 point of each other, demonstrating that Scoot’s application is comparable to other those of other applicants who were awarded a permit.

Permitted Scooter Operators - Final Scores for the 2021 Permit Application

Operator	Final Score	Permitted Fleet Size
Lime	78.8	2,000
Spin	78.4	2,000
Scoot	78.2	1,500

Changes to the Powered Scooter Permit Program

Due to the SFMTA’s findings regarding Scoot’s previous misuse of contractors in operations, we have updated the permit terms and conditions to ensure integrity in maintaining employment best practices. The SFMTA now requires all subcontractors to adhere to the identical labor standards we set for the permitted scooter operators’ in-house staff.

The initial maximum fleet size the SFMTA granted to Scoot will be 1,500 scooters, which is the same fleet size they were granted at the end of the 2019 permit. The SFMTA also granted permittees Lime and Spin each the same maximum fleet size –2,000 scooters—they were allowed at the end of the prior permit period.

As under the 2019 permit, the new permit program limits the maximum possible citywide fleet size at 10,000. Permittees may request fleet size increases in increments of 500 scooters every several months. Fleet size increases will be predicated on compliance with SFMTA-defined metrics and policy outcomes, including those focused on equity, access, and sustainability, as well as adherence to all permit terms and conditions.

Next Steps

The SFMTA plans to closely monitor permittees’ compliance with the updated permit terms and conditions. Additionally, Scoot and all other permittees will be subject to other improvements to the permit previously highlighted in our June 2021 scooter share blog post. We also look forward to further stakeholder collaboration as the Powered Scooter Share Program evolves.

 

 

Published August 14, 2021 at 12:47AM
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Changes Coming to NextMuni

Changes Coming to NextMuni
By Mariana Maguire

When the SFMTA first partnered with NextBus more than twenty years ago to create NextMuni, the real-time transit vehicle arrival predictions system was state-of-the-art and revolutionary for its time. As technology has advanced and our transit system has grown, we are moving to a new system that will best meet the needs of our customers.

Last year, the SFMTA Board of Directors and the Board of Supervisors approved a contract for the Next Generation Customer Information System to replace NextMuni.  Set to debut in 2022, the new Customer Information System will focus on improving predictions accuracy, particularly near the beginning of routes, along with several other customer-friendly upgrades. New, larger graphical signs in transit shelters will also feature maps showing the real-time positions of vehicles. These enhancements will help improve the customer experience and make riding transit easier.

While the SFMTA has been working on the Customer Information System initiative, we are still providing customers with the best information possible within the existing NextMuni system's technical limitations.  This week, we've made some interim upgrades that will make it easier for customers to navigate around the system and learn about the August 14 service changes. 

New NextMuni Improvements

We have optimized NextMuni for the SFMTA website, which means some new conveniences for customers navigating Muni, and important, customer-tested accessibility features:

• Customers can now stay on the SFMTA website for NextMuni predictions
• Arrival predictions are integrated with stop information rather than being in two different places
• For Muni stop information and self-updating predictions, typing SFMTA.com/ followed by the 5-or-6-digit Muni stop ID number takes customers directly to the Muni stop web page with details
• Muni stop pages provide both a vehicle-tracking map and a vicinity map integrated with the predictions and stop information
• Muni stop pages link to nearby transit stops so customers can consider alternative routes

What to Expect During August 14 Service Changes

Whenever the SFMTA implements a large service change, we usually receive many questions about NextMuni. In fact, you may see some lag in NextMuni updates when our next round of service changes goes into effect on August 14.  To help explain, here are some answers to frequently asked questions:

Why are predictions sometimes inaccurate after a service change?

For new and restored routes, it usually takes a few days after the service starts for accurate arrival time predictions to begin appearing. This is because the NextMuni software generates predictions based on the vehicle travel times it learns over time. When a line is new or restored, there are no travel time records. Since it's starting from scratch, the software needs a few days’ worth of data to learn travel times and generate more accurate predictions.   

Why are arrival time predictions not showing on the NextMuni displays?  

Stops near the beginning of routes may not show arrival time predictions. For high-frequency routes, the SFMTA operates "headway-managed" service by maintaining even spacing between vehicles rather than following set time schedules. Stops near the beginning of these routes will not show arrival time predictions unless a vehicle is already on its way. This helps reduce the “ghost bus” phenomenon where the NextMuni sign counts down the time a vehicle arrival but the vehicle never arrives.

 Why aren't new or restored routes showing on the NextMuni displays? 

New and restored routes must be in service before their information can be loaded into the sign display system. As soon as service starts, NextMuni personnel begin the process of adding routes to the appropriate signs. Once sign configuration is complete, which typically takes a few hours, the NextMuni system is restarted and signs should show the new and restored routes. If you believe a sign is not displaying the correct route, please let us know by contacting 311 or Muni Customer Service at 415.701.2311.

 

 

Published August 13, 2021 at 02:35AM
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Transit Access to Jobs Surged with May 2021 Muni Changes

Transit Access to Jobs Surged with May 2021 Muni Changes
By Tracey Lin

Side by side Graphics from the SFMTA Equity Toolkit showing an increase in job access from January service changes and May service changes for the Excelsior/Ocean View neighborhood.

With the implementation of Muni’s service changes May 15, 2021, and service adjustments made since by regional transit agencies, access to essential jobs via transit has gone up since January 2021, including some significant increases, in all nine neighborhoods identified in the Muni Service Equity Strategy. The Muni Service Equity Strategy focuses on improving transit performance in San Francisco neighborhoods that were selected based on the percentage of households with low incomes (below 200% of the federal poverty level), private vehicle ownership and race and ethnicity demographics.

The Muni service in effect as of May 15, 2021 is the most robust since the Shelter-in-Place order took effect in March of 2020. The reopening of all subway stations improved job access for Muni customers. And, the F Market & Wharves historic streetcar line also returned to service in May, bringing connections to Fisherman’s Wharf, a large employment center.

Over the course of the pandemic, equity neighborhoods overall performed better than more affluent areas in terms of access to jobs via transit. This was the result of deliberate SFMTA planning work to ensure that residents living in equity areas have consistent and improved access to jobs and other critical resources even with significant constraints due to the pandemic.

From January to May 2021, all service equity neighborhoods experienced increases in job access – some by small amounts and some by significant leaps. Here are a few neighborhood snapshots:

Bayview Hunters Point

Commute Time	Access via Transit to Essential Jobs Compared to Pre-Pandemic Service
	Pre-COVID	Jan 2021	May 2021
30 mins	100%	154%	229%
45 mins	100%	126%	127%
60 mins	100%	100%	100%

Increases in Bayview-Hunter’s Point to above pre-pandemic levels can be traced to the addition of the community-driven 15 Bayview-Hunters Point Express in January 2021, which connects to downtown. Also, the T Third Street Metro returned to provide rail service to Embarcadero in January. And once the T Third was interlined with the K Ingleside Metro in May, Muni access was expanded even further.

Excelsior and Outer Mission

Commute Time	Access via Transit to Essential Jobs Compared to Pre-Pandemic Service
	Pre-COVID	Jan 2021	May 2021
30 mins	100%	30%	83%
45 mins	100%	62%	86%
60 mins	100%	90%	95%

As service has increased, more connections from routes like the 14 Mission, 14R Mission Rapid and 49 Van Ness to downtown likely helped boost job access via transit. With the return of the M Ocean View Metro to Embarcadero and multiple bus routes in August 2021, we expect to see job access further increase.

Oceanview and Ingleside

Commute Time	Access via Transit to Essential Jobs Compared to Pre-Pandemic Service
	Pre-COVID	Jan 2021	May 2021
30 mins	100%	64%	97%
45 mins	100%	22%	71%
60 mins	100%	58%	95%

As mentioned above, in May, the K Ingleside and T Third lines were interlined into the KT Ingleside-Third, which allows for increased service between Balboa Park and Sunnydale.

Other neighborhoods experienced more modest, but still consistent, increases in job access. Neighborhoods like Western Addition and the Tenderloin are more centrally located near several key routes that were part of Muni’s original 17-route COVID-19 Muni Core Service Network, like the 5 Fulton, 22 Fillmore, 38 Geary and 38R Geary Rapid, as well as cross-town and connector routes that were steadily added back into service.

Western Addition

Commute Time	Access via Transit to Essential Jobs Compared to Pre-Pandemic Service
	Pre-COVID	Jan 2021	May 2021
30 mins	100%	94%	94%
45 mins	100%	94%	96%
60 mins	100%	94%	95%

 

Tenderloin

Commute Time	Access via Transit to Essential Jobs Compared to Pre-Pandemic Service
	Pre-COVID	Jan 2021	May 2021
30 mins	100%	91%	94%
45 mins	100%	94%	95%
60 mins	100%	96%	96%

Learn more about the SFMTA’s Equity Toolkit and explore the Toolkit in ArcGIS. We are encouraged to see how service changes have made a difference for our customers and recognize that there are still more improvements to be made to increase job access via Muni from service equity neighborhoods. Additional service changes are coming August 14, which are anticipated to further expand access to essential jobs. Stay tuned for our next analysis!

 

Published August 11, 2021 at 04:43AM
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