The Metropolitan Transportation Commission has allocated $7.6 million in Regional Measure 3 (RM3) capital funds, with $3.8 million going to the San Francisco Municipal Transportation Agency’s (SFMTA) Kirkland Yard Electrification Project and $2.4 million toward new Muni electric buses.
The Kirkland Bus Yard must undergo renovation to stay on track to meet the SFMTA's 100 percent zero-emission goal. The first of the agency's electric fleet will be arriving in 2027, with full electrification of the bus fleet scheduled for completion by 2040.
The Kirkland yard operates in a busy urban area on the north waterfront near Fisherman’s Wharf and Pier 39. The facility now houses an aging diesel-hybrid fleet, which will be the first to be replaced with zero-emission vehicles. The transition to battery-electric buses will help to eliminate the impacts of pollution and engine noise from the facility for neighboring residents and visitors.
With the other chunk of RM3 money, SFMTA will buy six 60-foot and 12 40-foot battery-electric buses as replacements for 18 40-foot hybrid buses now in service.
MTC has also awarded another $1.4 million to the Bay Area Toll Authority to advance Richmond-San Rafael Bridge access improvements and transit improvements along Cutting Boulevard in Richmond.
Bay Area voters approved RM3 in June 2018 to help solve the Bay Area's growing congestion problems. The measure raised tolls on the region's seven state-owned toll bridges by $1 beginning Jan. 1, 2019. Tolls increased by another $1 in January 2022, with another $1 increase set for January 2025. To date, the RM3 Capital Program has made a total of $904.8 million in allocations.
