{"id":42544,"date":"2025-07-11T13:02:52","date_gmt":"2025-07-11T20:02:52","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/occupysf.net\/?p=42544"},"modified":"2025-07-11T13:03:01","modified_gmt":"2025-07-11T20:03:01","slug":"42544","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/occupysf.net\/index.php\/2025\/07\/11\/42544\/","title":{"rendered":""},"content":{"rendered":"\n<h1 class=\"wp-block-heading\">SF supe wants to make Central Subway better \u2014 and maybe longer<\/h1>\n\n\n\n<ul>\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.sfexaminer.com\/users\/profile\/Adam%20Shanks\">By Adam Shanks | Examiner staff writer<\/a><\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Jul 9, 2025&nbsp;Updated&nbsp;Jul 10, 2025<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<ul>\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/sharer\/sharer.php?u=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.sfexaminer.com%2Fnews%2Ftransit%2Fsf-supervisor-danny-sauter-suggests-central-subway-extension%2Farticle_cb37c362-1e40-4c7d-848a-d065fc50f82e.html%3Futm_medium%3Dsocial%26utm_source%3Dfacebook%26utm_campaign%3Duser-share\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">Facebook<\/a><\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/intent\/tweet?&amp;text=SF%20supe%20wants%20to%20make%20Central%20Subway%20better%20%E2%80%94%20and%20maybe%20longer&amp;via=sfexaminer&amp;url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.sfexaminer.com%2Fnews%2Ftransit%2Fsf-supervisor-danny-sauter-suggests-central-subway-extension%2Farticle_cb37c362-1e40-4c7d-848a-d065fc50f82e.html%3Futm_medium%3Dsocial%26utm_source%3Dtwitter%26utm_campaign%3Duser-share\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">Twitter<\/a><\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><a href=\"mailto:?subject=%5BSan%20Francisco%20Examiner%5D%20SF%20supe%20wants%20to%20make%20Central%20Subway%20better%20%E2%80%94%20and%20maybe%20longer&amp;body=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.sfexaminer.com%2Fnews%2Ftransit%2Fsf-supervisor-danny-sauter-suggests-central-subway-extension%2Farticle_cb37c362-1e40-4c7d-848a-d065fc50f82e.html%3Futm_medium%3Dsocial%26utm_source%3Demail%26utm_campaign%3Duser-share\">Email<\/a><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/bloximages.chicago2.vip.townnews.com\/sfexaminer.com\/content\/tncms\/assets\/v3\/editorial\/6\/e3\/6e3229ba-69d2-11ed-b9f7-13b10619970b\/637bd0f31dadc.image.jpg?resize=400%2C267\" alt=\"Muni Central Subway opens\"\/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Muni riders during the new Muni Metro Central Subway\u2019s first day open to the public on Saturday, Nov. 19, 2022.Craig Lee\/The Examiner<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p>San Francisco Supervisor Danny Sauter wants The City to explore a possible extension of the Central Subway.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Sauter called Tuesday for a hearing to discuss the current functionality and potential future of the subway, which fully opened in 2023 and runs between Fourth and Brannan streets and Chinatown.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Despite lower-than-projected initial ridership numbers, an unstable economic climate and a local&nbsp;<a href=\"https:\/\/www.sfexaminer.com\/news\/politics\/bart-muni-praise-california-transit-loan-as-sales-tax-eyed\/article_0b597bf0-ff20-4403-9901-7b490a95c3d6.html\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">public transit agency facing a fiscal cliff<\/a>, Sauter sees value in at least contemplating a future in which the Central Subway extends beyond Rose Pak Station.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>\u201cIt\u2019s now time to examine what is working, where we\u2019ve fallen short, and what\u2019s next,\u201d Sauter said at Tuesday\u2019s Board of Supervisors meeting.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>The call to explore a Central Subway extension comes as the San Francisco Municipal Transportation Agency, among other transit agencies in the Bay Area, is scrambling to avoid financial calamity. Sauter said he is embarking on the endeavor fully aware of the financial crisis and tentative regional plans for a&nbsp;<a href=\"https:\/\/www.sfexaminer.com\/news\/politics\/bay-area-transit-backers-pitch-sales-tax-to-help-muni-bart\/article_3d4dabf6-9c14-4026-99f5-6240cfd7e110.html\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">2026 ballot measure<\/a>&nbsp;that would fund public transit through a sales tax.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>\u201cIt\u2019s one thing to go out to voters and talk about operations and upkeep of an existing service and line, it&#8217;s another thing to go out and sell a vision that we can expand transit, and there are ambitious projects on the horizon,\u201d Sauter told The Examiner on Wednesday. \u201cI think voters want to see that too.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>The Central Subway, which serves the T-Third Muni Metro line, was&nbsp;<a href=\"https:\/\/www.sfchronicle.com\/bayarea\/article\/central-subway-chinatown-muni-18689710.php?utm_content=cta&amp;sid=616ef88e1a685b526a1e6649&amp;ss=A&amp;st_rid=661447bf-9cf8-473c-87cb-db1dea567b1c&amp;utm_source=newsletter&amp;utm_medium=email&amp;utm_term=headlines&amp;utm_campaign=sfc_morningfix\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">plagued by cost overruns<\/a>&nbsp;and deadline extensions. It was originally expected to open in 2018, but didn\u2019t&nbsp;<a href=\"https:\/\/www.sfexaminer.com\/news\/the-long-awaited-central-subway-now-has-an-opening-date\/article_9bbcea38-392f-11ed-ba32-6b1460258f97.html\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">accept its first passengers until late 2022<\/a>. Costs were pegged at $1.3 billion in 2007, but that figure ballooned to about $2 billion by the time the ribbon was finally cut. Maintenance issues have persisted \u2014 it was closed from Feb. 26 through March 14 this year to address&nbsp;<a href=\"https:\/\/www.sfexaminer.com\/news\/transit\/sfmta-closing-central-subway-for-chinatown-station-repairs\/article_6c6ee9e4-f303-11ef-9d32-af1dbab94fcc.html\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">water leaks at Rose Pak Station.<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>But Sauter, whose district includes Chinatown and North Beach, pointed to reasons for optimism.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>April and May saw the highest\u00a0<a rel=\"noreferrer noopener\" href=\"https:\/\/www.sfmta.com\/reports\/average-daily-muni-boardings-route-and-month-pre-pandemic-present\" target=\"_blank\">T-Third line ridership numbers<\/a>\u00a0since completion of the project, he said, and there has been a 15% growth in ridership in 2025 compared to 2024 \u2014 excluding the weeks it was shut down for repairs.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\"><img decoding=\"async\" loading=\"lazy\" width=\"750\" height=\"500\" src=\"https:\/\/occupysf.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/07\/image-41.png\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-42549\" srcset=\"https:\/\/occupysf.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/07\/image-41.png 750w, https:\/\/occupysf.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/07\/image-41-300x200.png 300w, https:\/\/occupysf.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/07\/image-41-150x100.png 150w, https:\/\/occupysf.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/07\/image-41-225x150.png 225w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 750px) 100vw, 750px\" \/><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\"><img decoding=\"async\" loading=\"lazy\" width=\"4\" height=\"3\" src=\"https:\/\/occupysf.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/07\/image-37.png\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-42545\"\/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Supervisor Danny Sauter announce legislation to boost nightlife and spur recovery downtown at a press conference in Union Square, San Francisco on Tuesday, Feb. 18, 2025.&nbsp;Craig Lee\/The Examiner<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p>Sauter hopes the hearing will focus on short-term improvements that can be made to the T-Third line, which runs underground from Rose Pak Station in Chinatown, through Union Square\/Market Street Station, and continues to Yerba Buena\/Moscone Station before surfacing above ground at Fourth and Brannan and continuing down Third Street toward its terminus in Sunnydale.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>In addition to addressing above-ground bottlenecks&nbsp;<a href=\"https:\/\/www.sfexaminer.com\/news\/transit\/sfmta-t-third-line-has-new-look-for-central-subway-opening\/article_6af3baba-7bf8-11ed-a273-5b99979c59fa.html\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">on the T-Third line<\/a>, Sauter also hopes to learn about the plan for filling retail kiosks at the stations in Union Square and in Chinatown. He also plans to dig into the need for frequent repairs to elevators and escalators in Rose Pak Station, which rests deep below ground.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\">The number of local tech workers let go in mass layoffs fell 37% in the most recent yearlong period, according to the latest data<\/h3>\n\n\n\n<p>\u201cThere\u2019s definitely frustrations,\u201d Sauter said. \u201cI hear from a lot of members of the Chinatown community that when those elevators are down or escalators are down it just spoils the entire transit experience.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Existing problems have not dampened enthusiasm for the subway\u2019s extension. Almost as soon as the Central Subway opened, public transit advocates called for extension to North Beach, which has been studied for more than a decade.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>The subway already serves some of The City\u2019s most densely populated neighborhoods and would continue to do so if extended into North Beach, which has relatively&nbsp;<a href=\"https:\/\/www.sfchronicle.com\/sf\/article\/car-ownership-by-neighborhood-20050210.php?utm_source=chatgpt.com\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">lower rates of vehicle ownership.<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Sauter was inspired by an op-ed published in Streetsblog San Francisco by Tommy Laguana, a 16-year-old student at the Jewish Community High School of the Bay. Laguna wrote that two currently unused tunnels, bored during the Central Subway\u2019s construction, could provide a&nbsp;<a href=\"https:\/\/sf.streetsblog.org\/2025\/05\/08\/op-ed-its-time-to-extend-the-central-subway-to-north-beach\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">path for subway development to North Beach.<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>\u201cTunneling is among the most strenuous parts of underground railway construction, so the existence of the tunnels from Chinatown to North Beach would greatly reduce the difficulty and price of moving forward with the Central Subway Phase 3 extension,\u201d Laguana wrote.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Beyond North Beach, the subway could reach Fisherman\u2019s Wharf.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Sauter said newer San Franciscans may not even realize tunnels already extend to North Beach. There are also longtime constituents in his district who live in North Beach and near Fisherman\u2019s Wharf who were contemplated as part of the Central Subway project, but ultimately were left out.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>\u201cI think they deserve to know if this project is still being worked on, [and] what the prospects look like for extending it,\u201d Sauter said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Sauter noted that a 2014 city study found that a two-station extension of the subway to Fisherman\u2019s Wharf could expand its ridership by 55%. He also argued that such a project could be a contender for federal funding if and when the opportunity arises.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>\u201cWe\u2019re always going to find reasons or excuses to put off the big project, and if you keep doing that, all of a sudden you look up, it\u2019s been 10 or 15 years,\u201d Sauter said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>The hearing will likely be held later this fall.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>SF supe wants to make Central Subway better \u2014 and maybe longer San Francisco Supervisor Danny Sauter wants The City to explore a possible extension of the Central Subway. Sauter called Tuesday for a hearing to discuss the current functionality and potential future of the subway, which fully opened in&#8230; <a class=\"continue-reading-link\" href=\"https:\/\/occupysf.net\/index.php\/2025\/07\/11\/42544\/\"> Continue reading <span class=\"meta-nav\">&rarr; <\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/occupysf.net\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/42544"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/occupysf.net\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/occupysf.net\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/occupysf.net\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/occupysf.net\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=42544"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/occupysf.net\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/42544\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":42550,"href":"https:\/\/occupysf.net\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/42544\/revisions\/42550"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/occupysf.net\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=42544"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/occupysf.net\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=42544"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/occupysf.net\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=42544"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}