At the same time, BART will indulge in one of its favorite traditions since 2003: the seemingly endless rearranging of service for the Peninsula stations and the “Quentin L. Kopp Wye.” On weeknights after 7:00 p.m., and all day on weekends, only the Pittsburg/Bay Point line will serve stations south of Daly City; the line will stop at the Airport before terminating at Millbrae. Weekdays, the Richmond line will continue to terminate at Millbrae, and the Pittsburg/Bay Point line will continue to terminate at SFO. The Dublin/Pleasanton line will now always terminate at Daly City. Under this configuration, the routing of the three lines that terminate at Richmond or Fremont will remain the same as they are now, even off-peak.

This map depicts the service changes on the Peninsula:

San Mateo County service beginning September 14, 2009. Courtesy of BART.

Side remark for transit cartography enthusiasts: This map is different from the usual style, but it is official; BART has been tinkering with alternative system maps. The above image is excerpted from a file documenting the new schedules starting September 14 (PDF). But there is also a full version of the map, which includes other Bay Area rail lines, a separate diagram depicting three-line evening/Sunday service, as well as popular destinations served by BART. A sample of the full map has been on display at the west side of Montgomery Station.

UPDATE #2 (5 September 2009, 11:00 p.m.): A crack is discovered on the eastern span of the Bay Bridge, separate from the construction work being carried out this weekend. The planned Tuesday 5:00 a.m. reopening of the bridge may be postponed.

It’s the most wonderful time of the year: that time in which Bay Bridge construction necessitates that this critical workhorse link in the Bay Area’s roadway network be completely closed for the long Labor Day weekend. This year, we get the added bonus of the bridge being closed for all of Friday, September 4. The bridge will close at 8:00 p.m. on Thursday, September 3 and will reopen by 5:00 a.m. on Tuesday, September 8. During this period of of time, a critical piece of construction activity for the new eastern span will take place: a 300-foot section of the double-decker bridge (pictured below in orange) will be removed — and then replaced by a new double-decker “tie-in” section that will detour motorists from the bridge to the tunnel on Yerba Buena Island. This will allow Caltrans to later demolish the segment of the existing eastern span immediately adjacent to the detour:

Bay Bridge Closure 2009. Courtesy of Caltrans.

We’ve been hearing about this planned closure for weeks and months, and with this important transportation link to be closed both on Friday and the long weekend, motorists are of course encouraged to ditch traffic, avoid the freeways, and take transit instead. The Bay Bridge closures remind us how valuable our transit systems are to the region’s mobility and vitality, and they also remind drivers that they can indeed get around the Bay Area without their cars. BART is set to run 24 hours a day once more, although with limited overnight service — so Bay Area residents can, for just this long weekend, suspend (or at least relax) their envy of New York City’s subway system that never sleeps. When the Bay Bridge closed in 2007, BART set new system ridership records. BART ridership has declined this year because of the poor state of the economy; but it will nonetheless be interesting to see how many people choose to ride BART this weekend, particularly the overnight service. More info on transit service changes after the jump.

BART will run 24 hours a day for four days, including overnight service on Friday, September 4 through Monday, September 7. Overnight, trains will run only once per hour, serving fourteen stations: 12th St/Oakland City Center, Bay Fair, Berkeley, Coliseum, Concord, Dublin/Pleasanton, El Cerrito del Norte, MacArthur, Walnut Creek, Embarcadero, Powell, 24th St/Mission, Daly City, and SFO International Airport. On September 7, trains will run on a Saturday schedule. Keep in mind that even though the Bay Bridge will be closed until about 5:00 a.m. on Tuesday, September 8, BART will not operate in the early morning hours Tuesday. Click here for the schedule of additional overnight runs.

A quick rundown on the state of some other transit service during the Bay Bridge closure:

• AC Transit will operate truncated transbay bus service while the bridge is closed. Service will operate on the usual schedule: but transbay routes will feed into one of four BART stations (Coliseum, MacArthur, North Berkeley, or West Oakland). Riders will have to pay both AC Transit and BART fare in the westbound direction, but grab a BART-to-Bus transfer for a discount on the eastbound trip. The 800 all-nighter route will also operate on the usual schedule, connecting to 12th Street Station. For eastbound bus commuters: AC Transit reports that even though the Bay Bridge officially closes at 8:00 pm on September 3, the last transbay bus departing the Transbay Terminal that day will be the 8:20 p.m. run on Line H.
• Amtrak: San Francisco-bound passengers transfer to BART from the Capitol Corridor or San Joaquin at Richmond Station.
• Caltrans Bicycle Shuttle: The Caltrans bicycle shuttle across the Bay Bridge will offer special weekend service via the Golden Gate and Richmond-San Rafael bridges.
• Ferries: The Alameda Harbor Bay Ferry does not operate on weekends or on Labor Day, but will run additional service (PDF) on September 4 only. Meanwhile, the Alameda/Oakland, Golden Gate, and Vallejo Baylink ferries will all operate regular service on September 4, and all three will also offer extra service September 5, 6, and 7. Click the links to see the enhanced ferry schedules: Alameda/Oakland (PDF); Golden Gate (PDF); Vallejo Baylink (PDF).
• Greyhound: Riders bound for San Francisco can transfer to BART at 19th St/Oakland station.
• Muni will run the 108-Treasure Island bus 24 hours per day, as usual.
• WestCAT Lynx (transbay) service will be suspended on September 4 and 7. On September 4, Lynx riders can use a shuttle route (PDF) between Willow Avenue and Hercules Transit Center to connect to El Cerrito del Norte BART.

Enjoy the 24-hour BART service, and have a great long weekend! My apologies for the nonexistent posting over the past couple of weeks. There are several posts in the pipeline, but I have just been really busy lately. The pace here will pick up again when the air clears a bit. Thanks for your patience.

The other piece of news is the start of service on the new 74X line, a.k.a. CultureBus, a special service line that will link museums and other cultural institutions that are dispersed across San Francisco. The line will be introduced this week in order to usher in the opening of the new Academy of Sciences next week, on September 27. Fare — which is valid on the 74X for one full day — is $7 for adults, $5 for youth and seniors, and $3 with a Fast Pass. Service runs between about 8:40 am and 5:50 pm, on 20-minute headways. The line travels between Howard & New Montgomery and Golden Gate Park; along the way, it stops at the cluster of museums in the Yerba Buena District, at Union Square, and at the Asian Art Museum. Outbound buses then express to Golden Gate Park. The bus does not serve the more remotely-located Legion of Honor. Click here to see a list of inbound and outbound stops on the 74X.

Service will be run on special, branded vehicles — yellow, no less, so they will probably be difficult to miss. SFMTA anticipates pretty light ridership: about 20-30 riders per bus.  The success of the new line is premised on the assumption that enough people are visiting multiple museums in a single day, in order to make the expensive fare worthwhile — and perhaps it is also premised on the assumption that riders are not sufficiently familiar with Muni to realize that the cultural institutions along the route are already well-served by much less expensive (although locally-serving) transit. It would be interesting to investigate the extent to which ridership would increase by anchoring this line at a regional rail node. One nice service option might be to coordinate service with the hourly northbound Caltrain arrivals on the weekend, depending on how many riders that connection would attract. Also: while the 74X route waffles within a few blocks of the BART subway, it does not actually stop directly at a station.

If you have an opportunity to ride the CultureBus this weekend, please write back with your experience!

Saturday, June 28 (Pink Saturday, Dyke March):

• F-Market & Wharves: will not run past Van Ness starting 5:00 pm. Use Metro subway to substitute.
• J-Church: interrupted between Duboce/Church and 16th/Church, from 7-10 pm for the Dyke March.
• 5-Fulton: will not run past Franklin for evening and owl service, starting about 7:45 pm. Use the 21 or 31 in the evening, or nearby another owl route (38, N, or L).
• 19-Polk: Outbound to India Basin, buses will reroute around Civic Center by going west on Turk, south on Van Ness, and northeast on Mission before turning south down 8th Street. Inbound to Fisherman’s Wharf, catch the 19 at 7th & Market or Larkin & Golden Gate (or any of the usual points to the north or south of these stops).
• 21-Hayes: will skip around Civic Center, using Van Ness to get back to 9th/Market.
• 22-Fillmore: this one will be a mess from about 6-10 pm, so Muni will run an express bus service between Fillmore/Hayes and 16th/Mission. If your trip includes this section of the route, you have to transfer onto and off of the bus bridge.
• 26-Valencia: Buses will reroute onto Mission for the inner section of Valencia, up to about 19th Street.
• 24-Divisadero, 33-Stanyan: might be best to just avoid altogether after the late afternoon if you can, since service can be sporadic even on the best of days. At different times, the 33 will have to move off its route in the Mission and Castro. The Muni updates page lists in detail the route changes it may or may not choose to follow when the time comes.
• 35-Eureka, 37-Corbett, L-Owl: will have to make their way through activities in the Castro at night. Check here for the specifics about alternate stops.

Sunday, June 29 (Parade from Embarcadero to Civic Center, click here for SFGate maps). These changes apply until the parade route is cleared:

• F-Market & Wharves: no service between Steuart and Van Ness; use subway instead.
• Muni Metro Owl service: interrupted at the very end of its Sunday morning operations; will reroute onto Mission east of 3rd.
• 5-Fulton: will not run east of Van Ness during the parade. Rule of the thumb for the day: ride Metro subway to Van Ness Station, and then transfer to the 5 (at Van Ness/Hayes during the parade, and at Van Ness/Market after the parade).
• 19-Polk will have to skirt just around the end of the parade route at 8th and Market. Click here for the alternate stops.
• Several routes that converge onto Market will stop running at or near Market, including: the 6-Parnassus, 9-San Bruno, 21-Hayes, 26-Valencia, 31-Balboa, 38-Geary, and 71-Haight/Noriega. Transfer to the Metro subway or BART for the Market Street portion of the trip.
• Routes that cross Market near downtown (9X-San Bruno Express, 10-Townsend, 27-Bryant, 30-Stockton, 45-Union/Stockton) are usually a mess. The 30 and 45 will not run South of Market; use the 9X to bridge the gap, or use N-Judah/T-Third Metro service. The two clear thoroughfares that bookend the parade are The Embarcadero and Van Ness, so some North/South lines will have to swing out of their way to track around the parade.

For trips between downtown locations, the easiest plan in many circumstances will be to use a combination of Van Ness and the Metro subway to get as close as you can to your destination, and then walk the rest of the way.

Muni Official Service Updates: click here for full details about Saturday June 28, and here for full details about Sunday June 29.

Race Express Service: If you happen to land on an a special race express bus or train, the ride will cost more: $7 for adults and $5 for youth and seniors. If you have any Muni pass or passport, the fare is only $3. Normal fares apply for the regular local buses.

Express Service Before the Race (approx 5:45 am to 8:00 am)

• Along the 5-Fulton, from 47th Ave/Fulton to Transbay Terminal, making all stops west of Fulton/Masonic, with no stops between Masonic and Transbay.
• Along the N-Judah, from 19th Avenue to Embarcadero, making all stops west of Van Ness Station, with no stops in the subway between Van Ness and Embarcadero.
• Express Metro subway service from West Portal to Embarcadero. Trains will stop at Castro, Church, and Van Ness Stations, with no stops between Van Ness and Embarcadero.

Express Service After the Race (approx 10:00 am to 2:30 pm):

• Express bus service from Golden Gate Park to Downtown — purchase a special fare sticker or ticket before boarding the bus. Stops are: MLK Jr. Drive/Sunset, Turk/Masonic, Golden Gate/Fillmore, Golden Gate/Van Ness, Market/Powell, and the Transbay Terminal.
• Additional local N-Judah service (at the standard fare) will be added between 34th Ave/Judah and 4th/King.

Eastern half of route.

Service Changes affecting Downtown:

• Expect delays on local routes parallel to and near the race path: 5, 31, 38, 71, N.
• Some lines that run on Market or Mission downtown (6, 9, 14, 26, 49, 71, and Metro owl) will run no further than 10th/11th Streets. Before 8:00 am, the closest lines running on Market to take are the 5 and 21. Closer to downtown, other routes like the 31 will also run on Market. After 8:00 am, use BART or the Metro subway.
• The 21 will operate on the 5-Fulton route west of Market and will end at the Transbay Terminal (not Ferry Building). The 14 and 31 will also terminate at Transbay, rather than the Ferry Building.
• F-Market & Wharves: Except for the first few runs of the day, service will be split, with one branch from the Ferry Building to Fisherman’s Wharf, and another branch from Van Ness/Market to Castro/Market. Recommended to use either BART or Metro subway.

Western half of the route.

Citywide Service Changes on North-South Routes:

• Many routes (18, 19, 22, 24, 27, 33, 43, and 47) will be split in half by the race, so walking is best to bridge the service gap. For the 18, there is no service between Cabrillo and Judah. For the 19 and 27, there is no service between Mission and Harrison. For the 22, 24, and 33, there is no service between Fulton or McAllister and Haight. For the 43, there is no service between Hayes and Oak. And for the 47, there is no service between McAllister and Market.
• The 9X and 10 will reroute around the race, using the stops along the 12 line between Folsom/Fremont and the Ferry Building, and then proceeding onto The Embarcadero.
• The 30 and 45 will not run south of Mission Street. For Caltrain access, use the N-Judah. For more access to SoMa from Market Street, use the southern half of the 47.
• The 47 will serve Van Ness, north of McAllister, but the 49 will only run south of Mission/Van Ness.
• The 28, 29, and 44 lines will provide the usual Golden Gate Park crossings.

For more specifics, and info on how the north-south routes are divided into two sections around the race, check out the full details at the SFMTA page. Enjoy the race!

Route maps courtesy ING Bay to Breakers.

• Muni Metro service between Embarcadero Station and Caltrain will be suspended, so the N-Judah will terminate at Embarcadero, and the T-Third will operate south of 4th & King. The easiest access between Market Street and Caltrain will be via the 30 and 45 bus lines.
• Cable cars will operate on bus substitution.
• The F line will only operate between 11th Street and its western terminal point at 17th Street. Alternate routes to Fisherman’s Wharf/Aquatic Park area include: 9X, 10, 19, 20, 30, 47, 49.
• There will probably be delays and unannounced route changes on several bus lines operating near Fisherman’s Wharf, including: 9X, 10, 12, 19, 20, 30, 39, 47, 49.

The service updates will apply from roughly noon onwards today. Click here for the SFMTA’s post.

Above image extracted from How Stuff Works.

• The 5-Fulton will use the two-way pair of Main and Beale to serve the northern border of the terminal at Howard.
• During the short first phase, the 38/38L-Geary and the 71/71L-Haight/Noriega will serve the northern border of the terminal at Howard, but for most of the life of the temporary terminal, both the 38/38L and 71/71L will loop to the southern border of the site at Folsom, also using the two-pair of Main and Beale.
• Because the 71/71L will be rerouted to the terminal, the 6-Parnassus will terminate at Ferry Plaza.
• The 108-Treasure Island (now extended to the Caltrain Depot afternoons and evenings) and the 76-Marin Headlands will serve the temporary terminal. Several other routes (1-California, 12-Folsom/Pacific, 20-Columbus, 30X-Marina Express, 41-Union) that currently run on portions of Howard and Folsom will continue to do so, accessing the northern border of the terminal site.
• Unlike its current configuration, the route of the 10-Townsend will not directly serve the temporary terminal, with southbound buses using 2nd Street and northbound buses using Folsom and Fremont before aligning onto Sansome.
• The 14/14L-Mission route will not be changed, so it will miss the temporary terminal by one long block.

For visual learners, here is a PDF map of the final phase reroutes.