SAN FRANCISCO – Recently, Mayor London N. Breed and San Francisco Municipal Transportation Agency (SFMTA) officials announced that Muni received its highest customer rating in over 20 years. The survey found that 72% of Muni riders rated service as good or excellent, an increase from 66% last year and the highest rating since annual customer surveys started in 2001.

This improvement comes as the on ridership on key Muni lines has surpassed 2019 levels. The Muni Rapid bus lines reached 116% of pre-COVID ridership. The Muni Rapid Network prioritizes reliability and frequency in the city’s busiest transit corridors. The SFMTA increased service across the system prior to the pandemic and recently expanded connections to the Bayview, Mission Bay, and the Presidio.

Additional key improvements in the survey found:

Frequency of service: 63% excellent/good up from 51% in 2022
Reliability/on-time performance: 60% excellent/good up from 47% in 2022
Accurate arrival estimates: 64% excellent/good up from 49% in 2022
Trip time: 69% excellent/good up from 64% in 2022.

To improve service for customers coming out of the pandemic, SFMTA has focused on making Muni reliable, safe, and clean.

Muni is reliable: Muni service is more reliable than ever, with faster buses and fewer subway delays from improved maintenance strategies. Major subway delays have fallen 76% since 2019, and short delays are down 89%.
Muni is safe: SFMTA has launched key strategies to make vehicles and stations safer than ever. This includes adding staff and using cameras to deter criminal activity and to help the police address crimes when issues arise. SFMTA has also focused on driver safety so that operators are better protected from harassment or any threats.
Muni is clean: SFMTA has prioritized cleaning vehicles and transit platforms and shelters, so that riders have a positive experience whether they are waiting for their next ride or on a bus or train.

“Riders are recognizing our focused investment and efforts to bring Muni back and make it reliable, safe, and clean,” said Mayor Breed. “An efficient and reliable Muni is essential for driving our economy, supporting workers, and connecting residents across neighborhoods. I want to thank our Muni workforce, from our operators behind the wheel to our maintenance workers in the yards and our ambassadors and support staff across the entire system. Let’s keep doing the work to keep Muni rolling.”

“Thanks to the creativity and commitment of our staff, Muni is safer, faster, cleaner, and more reliable than it’s been in decades,” said Jeff Tumlin, SFMTA Director of Transportation. “Our passengers have noticed. Muni ridership continues to grow, with our most popular routes exceeding pre-COVID levels, and we have the best approval ratings we’ve seen in over two decades.”

“San Francisco’s future depends on being able to deliver safe, reliable and abundant public transportation,” said Supervisor Rafael Mandelman, who also serves as Chair of the and SFCTA. “Even in the challenging post-COVID environment, the city has been able to prioritize investments in transit, and these survey results vindicate those investments. I am proud that the County Transportation Authority has been able to contribute to the effort and congratulate the MTA on this great news.”

“Muni is more reliable now than it has ever been in my lifetime,” said Amanda Eaken, Chair of the SFMTA Board of Directors. “The team has been innovative and determined in their goal to deliver high quality service and the results are there to show for it.”

These are the top line results from the survey. The full results will be released this July. The survey was conducted between February 12, 2024, and April 2, 2024. 553 interviews were conducted in English, Spanish, and Chinese.

(SF Mayor’s Office Release)