Today is Transit Employee Appreciation Day! Take a minute to thank an operator.
March 18 is Transit Employee Appreciation Day. It’s a way for us to show our appreciation for the dedicated hard work of the operators, station agents, maintenance and security staff, cleaners, ambassadors and engineers – to list just a few – who keep San Francisco moving.
We encourage you to celebrate Transit Employee Appreciation Day this year by submitting a commendation (praise) for our staff. Read on to learn how to show your appreciation.
Meet the teams that keep Muni running
Every trip you take on Muni begins and ends with hard work. Our car cleaners make sure every vehicle is clean before it goes into service for the day. They also do spot cleaning and a detailed general cleaning of every vehicle every few weeks.
Our transit fare inspectors make sure people understand how to pay the proper fares. Our station agents answer questions and support our customers throughout the day. If we have to alter service for any reason, our ambassadors jump into action and make sure riders at affected stops and stations know what is going on.
Our maintenance teams keep our vehicles, tracks and wires in peak condition to ensure your ride is safe.
Our engineers and planners of course have designed our routes and make sure our service functions properly.
And then, of course, there are our operators. They navigate traffic, weather and even construction and protests to get our hundreds of thousands of daily riders where they need to go safely, reliably and efficiently.
And this year, it’s official. San Francisco’s Board of Supervisors today will be voting on a resolution introduced by District 5 Supervisor Bilal Mahmood to recognize March 18 as the city’s Transit Operator Appreciation Day.
The difference your feedback makes
This has been a bit of a quest for Muni bus operator Mc Allen. “Muni operators often are invisible to the public,” he said. “I wanted to do something about it.”
Allen realized that many passengers may not know there’s a commendation system for operators. He created a website to let riders know how to commend operators. “I want to remind San Franciscans that there is a way to show your appreciation,” he said. “It’s hugely appreciated by operators.”
“I received a commendation once, and it brightened my whole week,” Allen noted.
You can read more at Allen’s website. But if you want to give a shout out to an operator who made a recent trip memorable for you, we have a guide below on how to submit a commendation.
But it’s not just formal commendations that make a difference. A smile, a “thank you,” a kind word – those small gestures can change an operator’s day, especially today.
A simple ‘thank you’ goes a long way, but we have instructions on how to submit a formal commendation below.
How to recognize a Muni operator for a job well done
The SFMTA maintains a commendation system for the public to show appreciation for an operator who goes above and beyond.
Commendations can be made for anything from helping a rider get where they are going to announcing the stops along the route. This commendation goes into an employee’s file. In other words, Muni love makes an impact!
Here’s how to make a commendation on Transit Employee Appreciation Day:
- Go to our Muni Feedback webpage (SFMTA.com/MuniFeedback)
- Under “Type of Feedback” select “Praise”
- Fill out the form describing your praise. Note that only the fields marked with a * are required
- Click “submit”