You can’t please everyone and that includes who should have access to city bus routes. Plans for tech companies to use San Francisco’s municipal bus routes have had activists up in arms. As early as late last year activists have been barring buses that ferry tech firm employees from Google, Facebook, and Yahoo. They blame these and other tech companies in the San Francisco area for creating economic disparity. The lawsuit states the tech bus program displaces lower-income workers, creates greater pollution, and disrupt the usual flow of public transit.
Chris Daley, political director of SIEU Local Union 1021, stated “The buses tie up traffic and make their way into public bus stops without paying a fair share of the freight.” The tech bus program has been running for the past 18-months. San Francisco has exempted it from review under the California Environmental Quality Act as the program claims that it is still in its data gathering phase. The program employees 350 buses and the city estimates that about 35,000 tech commuters take advantage of the routes on a daily basis.
That should at least take the pollution argument off the table. Though an individual bus produces more pollution than a single car, 350 buses produce far less pollution than 35,000 cars. This should also cut down on traffic with all those automobiles off the road. As far as displacing lower-income workers are concerned though, it’s the flaw in the plan. It seems that this lawsuit really stems from jealousy of the have-nots, but this may be their silver lining. People should not be forced to leave their homes to make room for bus routes. Most likely this affair will be settled out of court, and hopefully it will be the last time we have to hear about it.
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