The best bad reviews of San Francisco's mobile landmark, the cable cars

"San Francisco Cable Car Company, you suck." "San Francisco Cable Car Company, you suck." Image 1 of / 29 Caption Close The best bad reviews of San Francisco's mobile landmark, the cable cars 1 / 29 Back to Gallery

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San Francisco's cable cars are not a commonly used utility — not for locals who can avoid it, anyway — but as a division of the SFMTA's vehicle fleet, they are nevertheless a mode of transportation.

People often forget that fact, particularly when they're in San Francisco on holiday, and some tend to view the cable cars, our beautiful but not entirely useful vintage cabbies, as exclusively a tourist attraction. And at that, it's one that some frequently complain about: there are long lines, the fare is expensive, and they don't always get along with the drivers whose main job is to get everyone from Point A to Point B safely, not provide entertainment.

Ultimately, that is an unfortunate conclusion, but the tourists do have at least one valid point. At $7 for a one-way ticket — up more than 233 percent since 2005 — the cost to ride a cable car is one of the most expensive local fares in the world. Unless a local has a monthly Muni pass (in which case cable car rides are included), riding them regularly can be out of the question.

There is a reason for that fare, however: the cable cars cost a lot of money to operate. They are a historical landmark, after all, but as a functional landmark they quite literally carry the weight of this city's population growth and tourism booms.

Still, most visitors to San Francisco love them. They have a 4.5 out of 5 score on TripAdvisor, with most people calling it a "must do" and "a fun way to explore the city." Not everyone's sold on them, though. See some of the best worst reviews of our cable cars in the above gallery.