San Francisco County Transportation Authority
Moving the City

BUS RAPID TRANSIT ON VAN NESS AVENUE

Bus Rapid Transit (BRT) is intended as an affordable approach to creating rapid transit along Van Ness Avenue, San Francisco's major north-south transit route, for two miles between Mission and Lombard Streets. The three BRT build alternatives and one design variation analyzed for environmental review all include:

• Dedicated bus lanes, helping reduce transit travel time by 32%.
• Transit signal priority, giving buses more green lights and helping increase transit reliability by up to 50%.
• Faster, level boarding through all doors to reduce transit delays by more than 40%.
• These benefits are estimated to contribute to a 35% increase in transit ridership along the corridor.

While undergoing planning and design, the project received the FTA's highest rating for cost-effectiveness several years in a row, an indication of its high benefit-to-cost ratio.

The Draft Environmental Impact Statement/Environmental Impact Report (EIS/EIR) was available for public review and comment for 45 days. The public comment period was extended until December 23 (see How to Read and Comment on the EIS/EIR on our Outreach page). The document compares BRT alternatives to conditions without BRT and documents how the BRT alternatives would affect a range of issues.

QUICK LINKS/DOWNLOADS Latest fact sheet in English, Spanish (Español), and Chinese (中文). Executive Summary of the EIS/EIR Chapters or complete EIS/EIR Comment on the EIS/EIR Project Schedule Outreach Notice of Availability/Notice of Completion in English, Spanish (Español), and Chinese (中文). Selecting a Locally Preferred Alternative.

El borrador de EIS/EIR que describe el proyecto y los posibles impactos ambientales estaba disponible al público durante 45 días-cierre de comentarios el 23 de diciembre de 2011. El BRT de Van Ness Avenue, propuesto para Van Ness Avenue (y una cuadra de South Van Ness Avenue), se extenderá aproximadamente 2 millas desde Mission Street hasta Lombard Street. Todas las alternativas que requieren obra civil proponen convertir un carril de uso mixto en cada dirección en carril exclusivo para vehículos de transporte público. Las alternativas que requieren obra civil se construirían dentro de la vía  pública existente e incorporarían las siguientes características: carriles exclusivos para autobús, abordaje a nivel de la plataforma, paradas limitadas en estaciones de alta calidad, semáforos prioritarios para los autobuses, mejorías a la seguridad del peatón, y otras características.

EIS/EIR草案所描述的專案和潛在環境影響在45天內供公眾審閱和評論，所有評論意見均需在2011年12月23日之前提出。提議的Van Ness Avenue BRT地點在Van Ness Avenue（和South Van Ness Avenue的一個街區）上，從Mission Street到Lombard Street延伸約兩英里。在每一套建造選擇方案中，兩條不同方向的車道（一條南向，一條 北向）將轉換為兩條公交車專用車道。建造選擇方案將完全在現有街道公路用地範圍內，並將包括以下特 徵：專用公交車車道、平面上車、統一公交系統停車站、優質車站、公交系統交通信號燈優先排序、行人安 全增強設施等。

HOW TO READ AND COMMENT ON THE EIS/EIR

The Draft EIS/EIR, describing the project and potential environmental impacts, was available for public review and comment for 45 days. The public comment period was extended until December 23, 2011. It is available for download (PDF) on our Environmental Review page, which also lists the locations of hard copies and CDs. You can also download a PDF copy of the Executive Summary. 

Agencies and members of the public may submit comments on the Draft EIS/EIR and project alternatives via email. Other methods to comment, via letter, or electronically during the webinar, are detailed on our Outreach page.

PUBLIC OUTREACH

A formal public hearing for the EIS/EIR will took place on November 30. An online webinar will take place on December 5 (see details below). Additionally, Authority staff will be making presentations at various community organizations and civic groups throughout November and December (see Upcoming Presentations, below). To arrange a briefing for your organization, please contact us or 415-593-1655.

• The public hearing was held on November 30, 2011.
• A webinar was held on December 5, 2011.
• The next meeting of the Van Ness Avenue BRT Citizens Advisory Committee (CAC), open to the public, will be held on Tuesday, November 15, from 5:00 PM–7:00 PM at the SFCTA offices, 100 Van Ness Ave., 26th floor (Agenda). See information on past CAC meetings.
• There are several currently scheduled community presentations about the Van Ness Ave. BRT Project and the EIS/EIR. Details on our Outreach page. To schedule a presentation for your community organization, email Michael Schwartz.

SELECTING A LOCALLY PREFERRED ALTERNATIVE

The Van Ness Avenue BRT Draft EIS/EIR analyzed three BRT alternative configurations and one design variation. In early 2012 we will identify a locally preferred alternative (LPA), based on the technical analysis and public and agency input. For more information, see the Environmental Review page.

PROJECT SCHEDULE