Big changes coming to Muni service across SF

A Muni bus and streetcar pass in front of Gap on Market Street in San Francisco, California, on Wednesday, Dec. 30, 2015. Beginning April 23, Muni will launch changes on 18 lines, mostly increasing frequency but also add two new Owl lines. less A Muni bus and streetcar pass in front of Gap on Market Street in San Francisco, California, on Wednesday, Dec. 30, 2015. Beginning April 23, Muni will launch changes on 18 lines, mostly increasing frequency ... more Photo: Connor Radnovich Connor Radnovich, The Chronicle Buy photo Photo: Connor Radnovich Connor Radnovich, The Chronicle Image 1 of / 30 Caption Close Big changes coming to Muni service across SF 1 / 30 Back to Gallery

Muni will be increasing frequency and expanding service hours on many of its core lines starting next weekend, a set of changes transit officials say will be some of the biggest in the system’s history — to the tune of $20 million.

The 18 lines selected by the initiative will be upping their frequency anywhere from one minute to 15 minutes, and two buses will begin running all-night service. The adjustments are the fourth wave of the “Muni Forward” plan started 16 months ago and aimed at improving reliability, connecting more neighborhoods and cutting down on crowding.

“These service increases touch every area of the city,” said John Haley, the agency’s transit director. “We wanted to connect some of our key lines in different fashions to leverage the regional network.”

Part of the plan includes linking two lines, the 28R-19th Avenue Rapid and the 35-Eureka from the Castro to Glen Park, with BART stations.

The changes come after transit officials held a series of neighborhood meetings and heard complaints and recommendations from riders. A year ago, the listening tour resulted in the “rapid network,” along with more cosmetic fixes, like a new map and improved bus shelters.

Tallying 700,000 trips per day, Muni carries more passengers than any other transit agency in the Bay Area. With that kind of ridership, said John Goodwin, a spokesman for the Metropolitan Transportation Commission, the investment will pay off and make public transportation more attractive.

But some riders are hesitant to believe the changes will be helpful.

Huntly Gordon, 81, a retiree who has lived in the city since 1986, was wary of the upgrade promises, saying he’s heard it all before.

“The supervisors ought to take this over and be responsible,” Gordon, who works part time at a bookstore, said as he waited at a downtown Muni F-Market stop. “Transit gets people up in arms, so you shove it away to someone else. ... That gives them a layer of defensibility.”

But transit officials inside and outside the San Francisco Municipal Transportation Agency say projects like Muni Forward help the environment and address the needs of a burgeoning population.

Haley pointed to the two new “Owl” buses as an example of meeting new ridership demands. The buses — which will run around the clock, seven days a week — are the 44-O’Shaughnessy from the Glen Park BART Station to the Bayview and the 48-Quintara/24th Street from Noe Valley to Third Street.

“People no longer work 7 to 3 or 9 to 5 in downtown,” he said. “This recognizes the reality of the city.”

Ken Touy, 49, a former San Francisco resident now living in Fresno, said the late-night buses will go a long way toward helping poor people working odd shifts without other means of getting home.

Touy, who was waiting for a 45-Union/Stockton bus on Market Street, said the convenience of Muni combined with limited parking means he’ll never have to drive into the city. The imminent boost in service only makes the transit system more attractive, he said.

“Three dollars for five minutes? It’s crazy,” he said of the city’s parking-meter fees. “And I don’t want to fight people who have parking rage.”

Kimberly Veklerov is a San Francisco Chronicle staff writer. Email: kveklerov@sfchronicle.com Twitter: @kveklerov

Muni changes

Expected to begin April 23, changes include frequency increases to these lines:

Weekend hours

All metro trains

Morning and afternoon commute

1-California, 47-Van Ness, 35-Eureka, 2-Clement on Sutter Street

Afternoon and evening commute

31-Balboa and 37-Corbett

Throughout the day

10-Townsend, 12-Folsom

Late-night service

6-Haight-Parnassus, 7-Haight-Noriega

Midday hours

28-19th Avenue

All-night service

25-Treasure Island