Eugene B

Change In Tonight’s VTA Board Meeting Site

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The first Santa Clara Valley Transportation Authority (VTA) Board of Directors’ meeting in 2017 will have a different site.  Due to a power outage at the County Government Offices, the VTA Board meeting was moved to the auditorium at VTA’s headquarters at 3331 N. First Street in San Jose.  Elaine Baltao, VTA Board Secretary, informed me around 11:30am about this move.

You can get to VTA’s headquarters by taking light rail to River Oaks light rail station, or the 58 bus line.  Here is a map of the area.

Up for discussion at this Board of Directors’ meeting:

Note the new meeting place for tonight’s VTA Board of Directors’ meeting.  See you this evening.

Eugene Bradley
Founder, Silicon Valley Transit Users

 

Transit As Designated Drivers

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Image courtesy 321happynewyear.com

On behalf of the Silicon Valley Transit Users, I want to wish everyone a Happy New Year.

As usual, many Silicon Valley Transit agencies will run extended bus and rail service on New Year’s Eve and early New Year’s day.  The Santa Clara Valley Transportation Authority (VTA) will have free fares for its buses and light rail from 8pm-5am New Year’s Day.  This also includes a special schedule for the 181 express bus between San Jose and Fremont BART station.

Also, SamTrans in San Mateo County will have free fares for its buses from 8pm-5am New Year’s Day.  Caltrain will have free fare service between San Jose and San Francisco from 8pm until about 2am New Year’s Day.  They will also have four trains leaving San Francisco after midnight, making all local stops to San Jose.  In San Francisco, MUNI will have free fares on its buses and light rail from 8pm-5am New Year’s Day.  BART will run trains until 3am system-wide, with extra service to accommodate for the New Year’s Eve fireworks show along the Embarcadero in San Francisco.

All transit agencies will run a Sunday/Holiday schedule on New Year’s Day (Sunday) and Monday, January 2 when New Year’s Day is officially observed.

Take advantage of these free and extended services tonight.  They will help avoid traffic gridlock and the possibility of getting arrested for driving under the influence.  They also help you beat the “surge pricing” expected for ride-booking companies like Uber and Lyft.

Follow @svtransitupdts on Twitter for transit updates to and from these and other events. Transit reports from BART, VTA, and other transit agencies from transit riders like YOU are reported daily.  Here’s how YOU can help report public transit delays.

Eugene Bradley
Founder, Silicon Valley Transit Users

 

Merry Christmas!

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Santa Claus aboard a VTA bus. Courtesy @monicamallon on Twitter.

On behalf of the Silicon Valley Transit Users, I want to wish everyone a Merry Christmas.

On Saturday and Sunday, all Silicon Valley transit services will run their respective Saturday and Sunday/Holiday schedules.  This includes Caltrain, Santa Clara Valley Transportation Authority (VTA), Capitol Corridor trains between San Jose, Oakland and Sacramento; ACE trains between San Jose and Stockton, SamTrans in San Mateo County, Dumbarton Express buses, and BART.

On Monday, the day after Christmas, is when Christmas Day will be formally observed.  Read on to learn how these transit agencies will run service this Monday only…

Read more →

Agenda For Our Last Meeting Of 2016

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svtru group gathering 07262016

On behalf of our group, I want to wish you a Happy (and safe) Thanksgiving.

Want to help make public transportation in Santa County better for everyone?  Please join us on Tuesday, November 29 for our last meeting of 2016.  At our last meeting for 2016, we will discuss:

  • Your thought’s on VTA’s “Next Network” transit restructuring proposal and what YOU can do.  (Read more about the VTA “Next Network” proposal.)
  • The impact of “Measure B” – its passage and where transit goes from here
  • increased safety issues on buses and trains and what YOU can do to help
  • other issues YOU have with VTA buses and trains, and how we can solve them together

TIME & DATE: Tuesday, November 29 at 6pm SHARP
PLACE: San Jose Peace and Justice Center, 48 S. 7th Street, San Jose
GETTING THERE: It’s about 50 yards south of E. Santa Clara Street in downtown San Jose, and near many VTA bus lines like the 22, 64, 522 Rapid, 72 and 73. It’s also a short walk from the Santa Clara (Street) light rail stop.  Here is a map of the area around the Peace and Justice Center in downtown San Jose.

Bring a pencil or pen and paper so you can take down notes on what to do.

Approving sales tax ballot measures every few years to improve transit is never enough.  Whining from behind your keyboard changes nothing.  Better only happens when we learn TOGETHER and fight TOGETHER in person.

Power to the people.  See you on Tuesday.

Eugene Bradley
Founder, Silicon Valley Transit Users

Next Network “Phase II” From VTA

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One week after Measure B’s passage, more bus service reductions in Santa Clara County are being discussed.  At a workshop today in San Jose, the Santa Clara Valley Transportation Authority (VTA) will propose to staff “an “85/15 balance between ridership-purposed and coverage-purposed services.”  What this could potentially mean:

If VTA pursues a more ridership-purposed transit network, routes that would be leading candidates to be decreased or discontinued are coverage-purposed routes located in the low density areas of Palo Alto, Mountain View, Los Altos, Saratoga, Los Gatos, Morgan Hill, Gilroy and the Almaden Valley, East Hills and Evergreen areas of San Jose. Some of the riders in these areas depend on VTA for transportation and VTA is exploring alternatives to retain their mobility while lowering the per-ride subsidy that VTA currently pays, which generally ranges from double to triple the system-wide average per-ride subsidy.

Where VTA’s “Next Network” workshop will be held:

TIME & DATE: November 18 at 2:00pm
PLACE: VTA Auditorium at VTA’s River Oaks headquarters, 3331 N. First Street, San Jose
GETTING THERE: VTA’s headquarters is across the street from River Oaks light rail station.  It is also served bh the 58 bus line.

Special thanks to @CALHSR on Twitter for informing our group of this news item.

https://twitter.com/CALHSR/status/799401608622682112

More information on VTA’s proposal will be posted this weekend.

Eugene Bradley
Founder, Silicon Valley Transit Users