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Protesters block Google bus in S.F. Mission

blog.sfgate.com

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Re: Protesters block Google bus in S.F. Mission

#91

Post by mahyarm »

ebiester wrote: post #51
xanderstrike wrote: post #38

I don't get it. The buses are cutting down on personal driving (a universally acknowledged evil), and paying for permits to use the stops (generating revenue for the city). Would these people rather the Google employees all drive personal vehicles, increasing wear and tear on the roads, congestion, pollution, etc., costing the city money? Also, is it really the companies fault that the value of housing in the area is…

No. At least the ones I've heard from, they want employees of companies in the South Bay and Peninsula to live outside of San Francisco. They believe that the mass influx of money is driving long time residents out, and that building more housing is the wrong solution. I remember reading one article that suggested there should be a wait list to get to live in the city.

They deserve the anti-development bed they create.

Re: Protesters block Google bus in S.F. Mission

#93

Post by mattstocum »

InvisibleCities wrote: post #33
theorique wrote: post #20

Earlier quoted context omitted.

sure, why not?

You know, we actually tried that for a while (search for Turnpike System or Turnpike Trusts on wikipedia), and it was an unmitigated disaster. Because turnpike operators had what were effectively local monopolies, they collected absurdly high fees and often spent as little as possible on routine maintenance, resulting in high cost / low quality roads. This was a major impediment to free trade, as it drove shipping co…

PA still has a fully functional turnpike system today. It is government owned, but our current governor was trying to sell it off a while back.

Re: Protesters block Google bus in S.F. Mission

#94

Post by HelloMcFly »

thetrb wrote: post #86
HelloMcFly wrote: post #59

Earlier quoted context omitted.

But even protests over ridiculous things tend to have at least some understandable, and sometimes reasonable, argument. Sticking to this scenario, can you not think of a single one for the protesting residents?

There are already several reasons mentioned in the comments here: - AFAIK currently the companies don't pay to stop at the MUNI stops. - A working public transportation system for everyone would be greatly preferred to a system that's only working for employees of certain companies. - By offering these shuttles companies contribute to more people living in SF, driving up rents (I'm not saying that they shouldn't be a…

Oh yes, I'm aware of several. My comment was strictly targeted towards the person I was responding to, who either has little imagination or was moving the conversation in a different direction.

Re: Protesters block Google bus in S.F. Mission

#95

Post by bobbles »

ryguytilidie wrote: post #82
Houshalter wrote: post #73

Earlier quoted context omitted.

According to a comment below they have a permit for it which they pay the city for.

The article says that the city is working on a permitting system, and that one does not currently exist. Which means that these buses are parking illegally everyday and instead of fining them, the city is coming up with a plan to accommodate them. Think they would do that for your parking tickets?

Probably because the city realises that having companies bus their employees around is a shitload better than having 20 extra individual cars on the roads?

Re: Protesters block Google bus in S.F. Mission

#96

Post by [deleted] »

Houshalter wrote: post #69
nhaehnle wrote: post #56

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Looking at the action critically, what is to be gained by calling attention to Google, Facebook, and others providing their own bus fleets? A bus fleet that works for everybody? You know, the kind of public transportation that is common in industrialized countries that have their act together when it comes to the provision of public services.

And are they aren't preventing anyone from doing that.

[deleted]

Re: Protesters block Google bus in S.F. Mission

#97

Post by xster »

erikpukinskis wrote: post #67
ChuckMcM wrote: post #48

It is entirely unclear what they are protesting, other than 'not working at Google.' The alleged trespass of using 'public infrastructure for private profit' is unsupported. People pick up and drop off people at the sidewalk (required, no stopping in the middle of the street). The staged appearance of a guy who is a union organizer (reported elsewhere) added a bit of melodrama. Looking at the action critically, what…

My guess is that the protests are targeted more generally at gentrification. People of privilege moving to the Mission, mostly ignoring the culture of the neighborhood and it's long-time residents, fueling out of control rent increases, slowly destroying a cultural landmark. I suspect the damage has more to do with CA property tax and SF's NIMBy zoning laws than silicon valley bussing, but they do have a point that i…

But then again, to push the conservatism to the extreme, not much of the actual original SF Ohlone native culture is still remaining.

Re: Protesters block Google bus in S.F. Mission

#98

Post by seanconaty »

seanconaty wrote: post #85

This op-ed does a better job at explaining how some non-tech residents of San Francisco feel about the buses. When your experience of a big city is a seamless parade of hip restaurants and privately funded transportation, it's easy to overlook the things that cities need, like filled potholes and a reliable transit system. San Franciscans feel resentful about the technology industry's lack of civic and community enga…

I personally think it has to do with wealthier people doing what they want regardless of what the community wants.

Similar outrage flared after the Sean Parker wedding. Regardless of what he actually did at the site, regardless that he paid a fine after the fact, regardless that it created jobs (I know a guy who worked for the lighting company) he pulled the ask-for-forgiveness-rather-than-permission stunt and did what he wanted to do, community & regulations be damned. He got what he wanted: a magical wedding in a beautiful, protected area of Big Sur.

Re: Protesters block Google bus in S.F. Mission

#99

Post by icebraining »

ryguytilidie wrote: post #82
Houshalter wrote: post #73

Earlier quoted context omitted.

According to a comment below they have a permit for it which they pay the city for.

The article says that the city is working on a permitting system, and that one does not currently exist. Which means that these buses are parking illegally everyday and instead of fining them, the city is coming up with a plan to accommodate them. Think they would do that for your parking tickets?

I don't get the objection. It seems to me that while the buses may cause disturbances to transit, they're better than the alternative of having a bunch of private cars on the road.

Think they would do that for your parking tickets?

If those tickets were for behaviors that are actually socially beneficial, shouldn't they? And if they wouldn't anyway, how is it Google's fault?

Re: Protesters block Google bus in S.F. Mission

#100

Post by raldi »

ryguytilidie wrote: post #65
ChuckMcM wrote: post #48

It is entirely unclear what they are protesting, other than 'not working at Google.' The alleged trespass of using 'public infrastructure for private profit' is unsupported. People pick up and drop off people at the sidewalk (required, no stopping in the middle of the street). The staged appearance of a guy who is a union organizer (reported elsewhere) added a bit of melodrama. Looking at the action critically, what…

"The alleged trespass of using 'public infrastructure for private profit' is unsupported. People pick up and drop off people at the sidewalk (required, no stopping in the middle of the street)." I'm sorry but this is simply wrong. If you tried to pick up and drop off someone in a bus stop everyday, you would get ticketed for it. These buses do not. If you need to make things up to support these people it kind of worr…

I dropped off and picked up my wife at the bus stop by 24th Street BART every workday for over a year and never had anyone challenge me about it.
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