City to employers: Prepare BART backup plan
By: Mike Aldax
Examiner Staff Writer
June 25, 2009
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| Alternatives: BART wants employers to have a back up plan if BART strikes. (Examiner File Photo) |
SAN FRANCISCO —
City officials are advising San Francisco employers to adjust their employees’ schedules — or allow them to work from home if possible — should BART service halt due to a labor dispute next week.
In a widely distributed letter sent out Wednesday, The City encouraged businesses to work with employees on finding alternatives to BART. Carpooling, buses, ferries and even adjusting work hours to avoid spending hours in congested Bay Bridge traffic were all suggested.
Another idea is to consider telecommuting, if possible, so workers can avoid the nasty commute altogether.
The point is to keep commuters connected to The City in ways that won’t stifle the operations of businesses that have already suffered due to the recession. But even then, few contingency plans would prevent a BART stoppage from dealing a blow to The City’s already ailing economy, local business leaders say.
Some 130,000 people commute from the East Bay into downtown San Francisco daily, accounting for 38 percent of all daily commutes, according to a recent study by the San Francisco Planning and Urban Research Association.
A decision by some of those folks to work from home — whether due to no train service or an increase in Bay Bridge congestion — would deal a blow to the downtown businesses that rely on the dollars commuters spend in The City during their work day, said Jim Lazarus, senior vice president of the San Francisco Chamber of Commerce.
Also, adjusting schedules might hurt the businesses that benefit from an influx of customers at certain times of the day, including coffee shops for early risers, lunch spots for noontime breaks, or the dinner or drinks many folks seek out after work in the early evenings, Lazarus said.
And those who had planned to come to The City for leisure rather than work might think twice about doing so. People not wanting to deal with highway traffic, or those who don’t own a car, might bypass a planned trip to the Giants game, or decide not to visit San Francisco’s museums or attend plays, movies or other events.
As for shopping? Well, there are other malls around the Bay Area that shoppers might choose to visit instead of those in The City in order to avoid bumper-to-bumper driving, Lazarus said.
"It’s like a ripple effect," he said.
Then again, not all would suffer.
"Parking-garage operators wouldbenefit," he said with a slight chuckle.
6 days left until June 30 contract deadline
BART service could come to a halt as early as July 1. The transit system and five unions are at the table negotiating a new contract.
LATEST DEVELOPMENTSManagement said: BART spokesman Linton Johnson said management welcomed the union’s request for a mediator.
The unions said: The unions have requested a state mediator step in to the negotiations, which they hope will lead to progress in the talks.
