The next UNN meeting should be on Wednesday, April 10.

Thank you to the great group of neighbors who attended our January 9, 2013 UNN meeting. We had excellent attendance at a meeting that was informative, productive and fun. There were many new faces along with long-time supporters, and that’s exciting.

So what brought so many of you out on such a cold night? Was it the wine and cookies? I don’t think so. The agenda (along with the obvious benefits from being around your neighbors) was the ticket.

The reps from SFMTA knew their stuff and were able to clearly discuss some focused issues regarding the J-line and private shuttles. We had asked that they explain why we still have so many non-J cars coming through our neighborhood to the car barn when we were told years ago that that would stop once the Third St. barn was done. The answer to that question wasn’t all that satisfying (something to do with congestion at Fourth & King St. affecting the T-line to the car barn on Third St.) Like, why wasn’t that considered when this was all being planned out?

However, we did get some satisfaction on this issue by hearing that the noisiest/heaviest F trains (Milans) will no longer come through our neighborhood. Also, we made a demand that we have NO DOUBLE Ns either. We also brought to their attention the track/street damage that is occurring at the crossover between Day and 29th St. (a crew was out there working on that area just days later), as well as how the cars are affecting properties along Church St. People are worried about structural damage from the heaviest cars and the lack of street stability. UNN will keep after SFMTA on the above issues.

As for the private shuttles, there is a decent effort underway by the Sustainable Streets dept. of SFMTA to make these buses more accountable, including being more identifiable. They are also trying to ease congestion at Muni stops by regulating where in the stop the shuttles can load/unload and at what times.

At peak commute hours (especially in the morning), it can be especially hairy because shuttle riders need to show I.D.s before getting on, and that takes time. So SFMTA is working toward alternative shuttle stops at these times as well as having the companies pay into a fund for our transit system. These shuttles are regulated by the State, so it’s somewhat difficult to add new City regs, but they’re trying. In the meantime, if you witness problems with the private shuttles, please send info to me at president@uppernoeneighbors.com and I’ll pass them on to SFMTA.

Lastly, we met our newest captain from Ingleside Police Station, Timothy Falvey. Captain Falvey repeated what captains and staff have told us over and over about crimes of opportunity in our neighborhood: Be careful when using your electronic devices in public…especially on Muni. They make people distracted and unaware of who’s around them. Bad people are just looking to grab those items worth hundreds of dollars, and there are a lot of easy targets out there.

Our next meeting should be on Wednesday, April 10. Stay tuned.

Vicki