Muni buses running on Market Street help people reach jobs, venues and more.
Our teams at the SFMTA are working hard to bridge a historic budget gap. As we plan for the next two fiscal years, hearing from local communities is our top priority.
Last fall, we launched and promoted a survey to better understand San Franciscans’ needs and priorities around transportation. Thousands of people weighed in, and we are thrilled to share the key points we heard.
Looking ahead, we want to keep this conversation going. We invite you to join us at upcoming budget open houses happening on March 7, 11 and 12.
See highlights from the survey, how our budget plan touches on key needs and the schedule for our open houses.
Meeting people where they are
From October 2025 to January 2026, we launched a massive outreach effort to learn from local communities. We published a survey and promoted it online and at 21 on-site pop-up stations in neighborhoods across the city.
Our North Beach Library pop-up – one of many ways community members could learn about our budget and take the survey.
We were thrilled to hear from so many community members. Our teams received more than 5,000 survey responses. That included more than 460 physical survey submissions.
What we heard from you
The feedback we heard highlights how vital public transit is for communities across San Francisco – and for the well-being of our city.
The 49 Van Ness / Mission helps riders reach schools, city buildings, arts venues and more.
Transit is a critical lifeline. 95% of survey respondents believe Muni is extremely or very important to San Francisco’s ongoing economic recovery and quality of life.
- “I never learned to drive so I am totally dependent on public transportation. Without public transportation I would not be able to work, buy groceries or live and would have to move away.” - survey respondent
We need to keep prioritizing reliability. The priority which rose to the top was maintaining the speed, frequency and reliability of Muni buses and trains. 69% of respondents chose this as their first choice.
- “What really ticks me off is when a bus is late or just doesn’t show up… the minute that something goes awry we can throw all reliability out the window.” - survey respondent
Muni needs funding. Over 80% of those surveyed see a clear need for additional funding to maintain our transit system.
- “As a low-income senior Muni is irreplaceable and the city should make it one of its number one priorities.” - survey respondent
Protect Muni service. We heard widespread feedback that the SFMTA must avoid more Muni service cuts and protect core operations.
- “Do not cut the 6!!! The 21 was my normal bus line and combining it with the 6 was frustrating but manageable. If the 6 is cut then that will be a huge detriment to the west side of the city.” - survey respondent
The message we heard is loud and clear: Muni is essential.
Thousands of SFUSD students use Muni to get to class. More than 50% of high school students use Muni daily.
Muni’s deficit and possible solutions
We have taken this community feedback seriously. The SFMTA has already achieved over $160 million combined in internal cost savings and efficiencies. However, we still face a structural deficit of $307 million beginning in July 2026.
As we work to balance our budget, we are making it a priority to maintain current levels of Muni service. There are three possible sources of funds for solving the budget gap. This includes one-time revenue, agency efficiencies and new revenue from regional and local ballot measures.
- Regional Revenue Measure: The Connect Bay Area Act authorized placing a one-cent sales tax increase on the San Francisco ballot to maintain Muni. If passed by voters, Muni will receive about $155M per year to address the budget deficit.
- Local Revenue Measure: As the regional measure will not fully address the structural deficit, a local parcel tax will further reduce the budget deficit and allow for some service quality improvements.
- Agency Efficiencies & Revenue: Building an efficiency culture and identifying new enterprise revenues will close the remaining structural deficit.
Join us at an upcoming Budget Open House. Learn more about the budget, transit funding needs and proposed changes to fares, fees and fines. Your voice matters as decisions are made about Muni’s future.
- March 7, 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. at the San Francisco LGBT Center
- March 11, 5:30 p.m. to 7:30 p.m. at the Richmond/Senator Milton Marks Branch Library
- March 12, 5:30 p.m. to 7:30 p.m. Virtual Open house
For free interpretation services, please submit your request 48 hours in advance of the meeting: phone 415-646-4619; email: Budget@SFMTA.com.
Learn more online and RSVP to our open houses on our budget planning webpage (SFMTA.com/Budget).
Comments are for the English version of this page.