The Transbay Terminal Is Reborn (Sort Of)

On Saturday, August 11, The #Salesforce #Transit Center opened to the public with a free block party to celebrate the near-completion of the $ 2.4billion dollar transportation project. Located on the spot of the former Transbay Terminal, which was demolished for a variety of reasons, the new intermodal transit station in downtown #SanFrancisco will serve as the primary bus terminal for the #San Francisco Bay Area.

Future plans include the eventual connection of rail service from the #CalTrain and future high-speed rail into the station. Although the new Transit Center has won rave reviews from various entities, local taxpayers are outraged that the Transit Center is scheduled to lose over $20 million annually until additional revenue sources can be found

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The murky future for the Transit Center may have been foreshadowed during the opening block party when Transit Center management had to shut the block party down an hour early due to be overwhelmed by crowds and transit fans, with officers from the San Francisco Police Department being called in to keep people out of the center.

For those of us that did make it into the center, and braved the crush of people, we enjoyed walking along the bus deck and relaxing in the roof top garden above the transit center.

However, it will be interesting to see how the Transit Center deals with the eventual growing pains, especially since Bay Area taxpayers are already asking questions about its budgetary shortfall. Another issue is how the new Transit Center will deal with the homeless.

The prior Transbay Terminal was a known homeless shelter for individuals looking for a warm place to stay at night. We noticed that the new Transit Center seems to lack benches or other areas where individuals could sleep or sit for that matter. As a matter of fact, the new Transit Center issued a 19-page code of conduct stating that it was illegal to sit down in the center in the prone position. So, although the Transit Center says that it’s a welcomed place for all, it’s sending a clear signal that this is not the case.

Stay tuned…