Public transit in California is underfunded
Muni's budget problems aren't the result of waste or mismanagement. They're structural — the product of declining revenue, rising costs, and tax rules that make it extraordinarily hard for transit agencies to adapt. And Muni is far from alone: transit systems across the Bay Area face the same pressures.
Parking revenue has collapsed
Muni depends heavily on parking meters, garages, and citations. Before the pandemic, parking provided roughly a third of SFMTA's operating revenue. It now provides about 16%. (SFMTA)
This didn't start with COVID. Ride-hailing had already been eating into parking revenue for years — fewer people driving to destinations means fewer people paying for parking. The pandemic accelerated the decline, but even before it hit, SFMTA's operating revenue had fallen from 60% of the Muni budget in FY2013-14 to 51% in FY2018-19.
Traffic makes Muni more expensive to run
Muni buses share the street with cars. When traffic gets worse, buses get slower — and slower buses cost more to operate.
If a bus route that used to take 45 minutes now takes 60, you need a third more drivers to maintain the same frequency. Muni's average speed is just 8 mph — well below the 12.8 mph national average. (SFMTA, SPUR)
Ride-hailing has made congestion significantly worse. An SFCTA study found that Uber and Lyft accounted for roughly half of the increase in San Francisco's congestion between 2010 and 2016. It's a vicious cycle: more cars slow buses down, slower buses push riders toward cars, fewer riders mean less fare revenue, and less revenue means service cuts.
Transit lanes help break the cycle. Since 2020, SFMTA has added 22+ miles of transit lanes — delivering up to 35% faster travel times on improved routes. But building and enforcing transit lanes requires funding.
Costs keep rising
Transit is a service business. Most of an agency's budget goes to the drivers, mechanics, operators, and dispatchers who keep the system running. (CalMatters) Those workers need to be paid wages that keep up with the Bay Area's cost of living. Healthcare costs are rising at the fastest rate in 15 years. Pension obligations are locked in for decades.
Meanwhile, costs have continued to rise, driven largely by historically high inflation.
They've already cut
SFMTA has cut $95 million in inflation-adjusted spending and frozen hiring. These are real, significant reductions — but they can't close the gap on their own. When your revenue has dropped by a third and your costs are structurally rising, no amount of belt-tightening gets you to balance.
The city budget can't fill the gap
The San Francisco General Fund is Muni's single largest funding source — but the General Fund itself is under severe strain. The city is facing a projected deficit of $1.4 billion over five years, compounded by federal funding cuts.
That's why a dedicated revenue source matters. A parcel tax doesn't compete with other city priorities — it goes directly to Muni.
California's tax rules make it harder
Most states let transit agencies raise their own revenue to respond to shortfalls. California makes it exceptionally difficult. Proposition 13 (1978) capped property taxes and required a two-thirds supermajority for most local tax increases. Propositions 218 and 26 further restricted what agencies can charge. (SPUR)
That's why every significant new revenue source requires going to the ballot — which is why Stronger Muni for All, a San Francisco parcel tax, is heading to voters in November 2026.
See what the Stronger Muni for All parcel tax looks like for your address:
Common questions
Why not just cut waste and mismanagement?
SFMTA has already made significant cuts — $95 million in reduced spending plus a hiring freeze. The deficit is structural: the costs that can't be cut (labor, healthcare, pensions) are growing faster than the revenue sources that are in decline.
What about fare evasion?
We know it's frustrating to see people skip their fare. But fares have never been how transit systems pay for themselves — no major US transit agency covers its operating costs through fares alone. Even before the pandemic, fares made up a relatively small share of Muni's budget. If every single rider paid full fare with zero evasion, it wouldn't come close to closing the deficit. The gap is driven by the collapse of parking revenue, rising labor costs, and slower buses.
Two measures. One transit future.
The Stronger Muni for All parcel tax funds local Muni operations. Connect Bay Area is a complementary regional measure that funds transit operations across the Bay Area. Both measures need to pass to build a functional, connected transit system for San Francisco and the region.