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Release date: SFMTA Announces Expanded Twin Peaks Tunnel Improvement Project and West Portal Station Makeover

*** Press Release ***

Beginning Wednesday, January 2, 2008, the San Francisco Municipal Transportation Agency (SFMTA) will begin additional work in the Twin Peaks Tunnel and launch a makeover of the West Portal Station as part of a major initiative to upgrade those facilities and to improve Muni Metro service.

The SFMTA is pleased to announce that the Metro Improvement Project, conducted in the Muni Metro for the past two years and in the Twin Peaks Tunnel for the past year, will be completed by mid January, on schedule and under budget. During inspections and survey work conducted this fall, however, the SFMTA determined that due to age and deferred maintenance the track bed in the Twin Peaks Tunnel is in need of maintenance.

SFMTA management has put together an aggressive, 65-day, accelerated schedule to ensure these important repairs are made as quickly as possible and with as little disruption to neighbors as possible. This repair work will be done on a schedule similar to the Metro Improvement Project. Specifically, the late-night work will be performed Monday through Friday from 9 p.m. to 4 a.m. Muni bus shuttles will continue to operate between West Portal and Van Ness stations after 9 p.m. With the improved track bed and new overhead wire system in place, Muni Metro lines that use the tunnel will operate through it at higher speeds, offering more reliable service and a smoother ride.

In addition to the trackway maintenance work, the SFMTA will also take this opportunity to respond to requests from the community and District 7 Supervisor Sean Elsbernd to upgrade the West Portal Station. This comprehensive makeover entails:

  • Deep cleaning and pressure washing beginning at station exterior and through the station to the platform
  • Graffiti removal
  • Cleaning of high areas
  • Removal and replacement of newspaper stands
  • Pigeon abatement
  • Repainting
  • Glass cleaning and replacement of damaged glass and lexan panels
  • Stainless steel cleaning and polishing

Station landscaping will be pruned, including major trimming of the six overgrown pine trees. A sodded lawn will be installed on the lower level area and all vegetation will be removed from the trackway. Moreover, the south area will be re-landscaped and could include a bird bath and decorative landscape rocks. The upper area may require a retaining wall which could be back filled with top soil to cultivate trees, bushes, shrubs and other plants.

 “I want to thank the residents, merchants and our customers for their patience and understanding. Just as roads need to be repaired and patched from the wear and tear of traffic, so too do the trackways on which Muni trains operate,” explained SFMTA Executive Director/CEO Nathaniel P. Ford Sr. He continued, “Underinvestment in the Muni system has brought us to a point where we cannot postpone this work. As custodians of this system for the people of San Francisco, we must keep the system in good repair to provide more reliable service.”

 

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