Peninsula Moves!

By Will Reisman, @WillReisman

Muni Set To Improve 14-Mission Bus Line: Muni will start a transit improvement project this month that will upgrade street conditions for 2.5 miles on the popular 14-Mission bus route. As part of a $3.8 million Street undertaking, Muni will install a transit-only lane on portions of Mission and Cesar Chavez Street, consolidate bus stops, and eliminate some left-hand turns. The changes will enhance pedestrian safety, speed up transit times by up to five minutes and reduce congestion on the busy thoroughfares covered by the 14-Mission. This past weekend, Muni began removing stops as part of the consolidation project and on February 22, the agency will begin painting the transit-only lanes red. The project is scheduled to be finished in April, and will benefit the 65,000 daily passengers who travel along the route.

Celebrate Chinese New Year in San Francisco: A month long series of events celebrating the Year of the Monkey will be capped off by the annual Chinese New Year Parade in San Francisco on Saturday. The parade will wend its way through downtown San Francisco, as onlookers will get a chance to see hundreds of elaborately-designed floats, skilled dancers, costumed characters, fireworks exhibitions and the 268-foot long Golden Dragon display. The parade kicks off at 5:15 p.m. and Caltrain’s weekend schedule offers plenty of travel opportunities for Peninsula residents travelling to San Francisco for the event. Upon arriving in San Francisco, parade attendees can transfer to Muni’s 30 and 45 bus lines, or the N-Judah light-rail line for direct service to the celebration.

Discuss San Jose’s Lighting Project At SPUR: San Jose is embarking on an ambitious interactive lighting project that will bring a new perspective to the South Bay city’s downtown core. The Illuminating Downtown Project includes the installation of high-tech and carefully-designed lighting displays to four thoroughfares in San Jose, an element that city planners hope will make the downtown area more enjoyable and accessible for visitors. On Thursday, SPUR, a local think-tank, will host a lunchtime discussion featuring representatives from the city, neighborhood associations and local architect firms talking about how the project can benefit San Jose. The event will take place at 12:30 at SPUR’s San Jose office, which is about a 15 minute walk from the San Jose Diridon Caltrain Station.