Transport and getting around!!!

Hi guys!!!!

So, the last time out i finished up by saying i would talk about the transport system of San Francisco and the Bay Area. Well, i guess thats what i will do in this one. The way i will structure this post will be as follows:

1. Highlight the different modes of transport
2. Give information on fares
3. Getting further than the city limits
4. Any other stuff that comes to mind while typing this.

I suppose i will just dive in head first and get straight to it. So, there are a few different ways to get around the city and Bay Area. Within the city limits you will use the Muni. Muni is the nickname given to the main transport system. It comes from SFMTA which stands for San Francisco Municipal Transport Agency. Muni comes from the municipal part.  To get outside the city limits and around the parts of the Bay Area you have 2 options. The first is the BART (Bay Area Rapid Transit) or the Caltrain.

Here are a few links to the system maps of each of the above mentioned.

Muni: Muni system map (Light Rail) Muni system map (Bus) 

With the muni there are 2 options. One being light rail, like the luas in Dublin and the other being bus.

BART: BART system map

Caltrain: Caltrain system map

Muni

The muni will help you get around the city limits. The city limits are basically anything north of Daly city. Its network consists of  71 bus lines, 7 light rail lines, 3 cable car lines and a heritage street car known as the F-Line. The F-Line runs along Market St. from the Castro to the Fishermans Wharf. The light rail lines are all given letters for their names. These lines are as follows:

• N-Judah: This runs from Ocean Beach along Judah street in the north of the Sunset, through the haight and then downtown and beyond to the Caltrain depot at 4th & King. If you want to go to see the SF Giants play baseball at AT&T park you will get this. 
• L-Taraval: This runs from the SF Zoo on the south side of the Sunset along Taraval street and continues downtown ending at Embarcadero station.
• M-Ocean View: This line runs from Balboa Park BART Station along 19th Ave, past SFSU and continues downtown ending at Embarcadero station.
• K-Ingleside: This also runs from Balboa Park BART Station into West Portal and continue downtown to Embarcadero station. At Embarcadero station it becomes The T-Third Street line.
• T-Third Street: This is a continuation of the K line and continues along the same line as the N-Judah. It doesn't end at the Caltrain depot though. It brings you on down to Bayshore. If you are going to see the 49er's at Candlestick Park you would take this train.

As mentioned earlier there are over 70 bus line. Far to many to name individually. If you click on the link above called "Muni system map (bus)" you will get all the route details.

BART

BART is a rapid transit system serving the San Francisco Bay Area. The heavy rail public transit system connects San Francisco with cities in the East Bay and suburbs in northern San Mateo County. BART operates five lines on 104 miles of track with 43 stations in four counties. There is a system map above that will show you all the routes of BART. You will more than likely only use BART to get between Berkeley and the city. To get to Berkeley from the city you can either take the red Richmond line that will take you directly into Downtown Berkeley with no need for a transfer or the yellow Pittsburg line. If you take the Pittsburg line you will need to transfer at MacArthur station. If you do get the Pittsburg line there should be a train on the other side of the platform waiting to take you to Berkeley. They have this worked out so there is no waiting around. If you are travelling the opposite direction from Berkeley to the city then you can either get the red Daly City/Milbrae line directly into the city with no transfer or the orange Fremont train and transfer at MacArthur Station. The journey in either direction should take you no more than 40 minutes.

Caltrain

The Caltrain is what you will use to reach the south bay. In the South bay you have San Jose, Stanford university and Gilroy amongst other places. During the week there is a train leaving every half an hour. At Milbrae there is a connection to the BART lines. Some reasons why you might need to use the Caltrain would be to go see the San Jose Earthquakes, who play in the MLS, in Santa Clara College, go to Great America Theme Park also in Santa Clara, go visit Stanford University at Palo Alto, do some shopping at the outlet mall in Gilroy or make a connection to get a bus out to Santa Cruz to lounge on the beach.


I will now give you some info on pricing. If you are living in the city i advise you to purchase a monthly MUNI pass. This will cost you about $70. it is a worthwhile purchase even for 2 or 3 weeks if you have a job. you will still save money and can use it on the BART lines too. but only between Balboa Park and Embarcadero Station. A single journey on a MUNI will cost $2. This fare lasts up until the time shown on the ticket and can be transfered to any other light rail or bus. Maybe even the BART, but i'm not sure. If you travel to and from work 5 days a week that will amount to$20 a week. and over the course of a month will run up to $80. Then there are all the other times you will use the MUNI when not working. you can easily run up a bill of $150 a month on transport. This is why you should get the monthly pass. I think the price of a single fare has gone up. The BART can be very expensive if you use it regularly to get to work. it can cost you up to $50 a week, even more. The Caltrain will probably cost about $15 dollars to get the full length of the line.


That is all that i can think of at the moment. sorry if this post sucks. I have not been feeling great the last few days. was holed up in bed with a bad dose and my head is a bit fuzzy. I hope that i have given you enough info here to get you around the Bay Area. I am sure i have left so much out of this. If i think of anymore i will defo put up another post about it. If you have any queries about this issue then feel free to contact me at sanfranj1@gmail.com




Next up i will give a post about the districts and neighborhoods of San Francisco. This will be a big one as there is a lot to talk about in it. Talk to you later guys....