>> you're watching coping with covid-19 with chris manners. today's special guest is julie kirschbaum. >> hi. i'm chris manners. you're watching coping with covid-19. today, i'm speaking with the executive director of the sfmta. thank you and welcome to the show. >> thank you for having me. >> can we begin by talking about the services that have been suspended and there have been changes to the services that are still running? >> absolutely. we've had to make really significant changes to our services in response to covid-19. initially going down to as few as 17 routes. these are routes that people use to get to work or the hospital, grocery stores,

really to make the most essential trips that are needed throughout this process. we've been fortunate over the last, say, five or six weeks, that our staffing levels have gotten better, and as we've increased our cleaning capacity, that we've been able to add some community services back. we've added a shuttle on pacific avenue, which is helping seniors get to grocery stores in chinatown. we've added a community inline bus in ingleside, and we've been adding more service to our core network. our corridors like mission street, potrero near s.f. general, and really needing increasingly more and more service in order to prevent spacing and -- keep spacing and

prevent crowding on the bus. >> thank you. what measures have you been taking to prevent passengers on the bus? >> your safety has been our top priority and is guiding everything that we do. the most critical thing that we're doing is the mask requirement, where we're requiring people, if you're going to ride muni, to do it safely, protecting yourself and others from germs. we've also implemented back door boarding, so except for our customers with disabilities that will need the support of the front door, the ramp, or the leader, we're asking customers to enter from the back to give extra spacing to our operators. we've provided operators with all of the protective equipment that they need to do the job safely, including gloves and masks, and we're really fortunately that our bus --

fortunate that our buses are equipped with a plexi glass door that creates an operating space for our operators. and some of services like the cable car historic trolleys we don't have that same protection, we suspended early on in this process. we want our operators to have the physical separation that they need to stay safe on the road. >> absolutely. so how have you been managing physical distancing on public transportation? what happens if a bus gets full? >> great question. we have reduced the number of people that we consider a bus to be crowded, so heading into this, we might have had 70 or 80 people on the bus. now, it's closer to 20. we also are monitoring our passenger loads. both our operators are

monitoring them as well as we're monitoring them remotely from our transportation management center. if the bus does get too crowded, the operators have a drop-off only sign, and they stop picking passengers up until enough exit the vehicle. it might be a little bit inconvenient if you're waiting for a bus and it doesn't stop to pick you up, but there's another one coming behind it so we can make sure that you have social distancing throughout this process. >> what other ways have you been letting passengers and residents know about these changes and new policies? >> we've been using all methods to keep customers informed about all of these changes. we've put up almost 2,000 signs and posters at our bus stops in multiple languages, letting people know when routes have

been eliminated, when hours have changed, when service has changed. we've also been putting it up through social media and neighborhood groups, and also really relying on the media and press to notify customers about changing. we want the public to know what to expect in this really unique and unusual time to make things as convenient as possible. >> quite right, yes. other than the operators themselves, i know you have a very large support staff. have you made changes at your muni facilities, as well. >> sfmta has 29 facilities, and enhancing safety at those facilities has really been a team effort. we have an amazing custodial crew that's been doing deep

cleanings. we were able to take staff that had been cleaning the subway stations and dedicate them to our facilities. we have also seen staff at every level jump in and help with daily cleanings in places like common areas, desks, tools. everyone is pitching in to wipe stuff down, which makes a big difference. we are proud of the fact that we haven't had any clusters of staff who have had the virus or really any examples of staff catching it from each other, and we feel it's because of the steps that we're taking to keep people safe at work. we're also taking ideas from everywhere in the organization. that includes safety briefings, rather than doing them in a small room, doing them outside, in a parking lot.

in order to get to job sites, staff had previously taken three or four people in a city truck. now, we're taking them in a bus so they can actually space out during the trip to the site. >> oh, that's great stuff. when we look at the transportation system as a whole, what additional steps have been taken to encourage people to consider alternative forms of transit. >> we have been looking at it as a system in part because the bus system is doing less than it has in the past because we have fewer routes and because we have fewer people riding. one example is our e.t.c. program, which is a taxi-based program that seniors and people with disabilities can sign up for and use a taxi for essential trips at a highly

discounted rate. we're also looking at a transit system that people can get out walking or biking. >> how are we planning on next steps as restrictions ease and we move into phase two and eventually phases three and four? >> i think probably our biggest thing that we're getting ready for right now is the start of school in august, and make sure that we're ready, not only to accommodate all of the general activities, like going to restaurants and recreation, but also getting kids to school safely. we're also looking at what are other cities doing around the world that we can learn from, and that's where we are forming our work, as well. we are really fortunate that we had an opportunity to skype with taipei, a city that's had

a lot of success addressing the virus. the mayor actually joined the skype call, and one of the things that they shared with us, their biggest success has come with 100% compliance masks on mass transit. in other cases, monitoring for temperatures and really making sure that people were riding, that they were riding healthy, so we're trying to model and apply those best practices to our system and learn as much as we can through this process. >> well, that's fantastic information. i really appreciate you coming on the show, miss kirschbaum. thank you for the time you've given us today. >> thank you. >> thanks again. well, that's it for this episode. we'll be back with more covid-19 relates information shortly. you've been watching coping with covid-19. i'm chris manners. thanks for watching.

>> hi, i'm chris manus is sfgov tv and you're watching "coping with covid-19." today i'm going to the gas station. [music playing] now, these are just my stories. i'm not a medical professional of any kind. i'm a video guy. and the reason i'm getting gas so we can go to the doctors.

if you want to get the most up-to-date and definitive information about the coronavirus pandemic, i highly recommend the f.a.q. that is available at sfgov. there's great info there. today i'm taking two plastic bags and a hair tie and following the new bay area guidelines and i'm wearing a mask. i'm taking the smallest number of items with me. just my car key, credit card, i.d., the bags and the hair tie. i don't want too many items to wipe down later. as aleave, i put on the outside shoes i've left on the porch. can i track the virus inside with my shoes? i honestly don't know. but my floors are cleaner now. when i get to the gas station, i get out of the car, remove the gas cap and put the big plastic bag on my right hand and secure it with a hair tie. there are three main share surfaces here i'm concerned about touching. the p.i.n. pad, the pump handle and the button to select my gas.

after i use my card, i put it into the smaller bag and stash it. most gas stations have a paper towel dispenser or maybe there is a piece of paper already in your car that you can use. once i fill my tank and replace the pump, i walk to the trash can, roll the hair tie up my arm and let the plastic bag fall into the can. on my drive home, i'm careful not to touch my face. i leave my outside shoes on the porch and as soon as i get through the door, i wash my hands for at least 20 seconds. next i wipe down my credit card, i.d. and my car key and, as an extra precaution, i wipe down the front door nob and clean the sink taps. finally, wash my hands again. that's it for this episode, i hope you found it helpful. thank you for watching.

>> good morning, everyone. this meeting will come to order. welcome to the june 22, 2020 rules committee. i am chair of the committee. with me is vice chair stefani and rules committee member mar. we are also joined this morning by matt haney. the clerk today is victor young. i would like