San Francisco

Lore & Background

Muni's logo is a stylized, trademarked "worm" version of the word muni, designed by San Francisco-based graphic designer Walter Landor in the mid-1970s. Bus announcements are in four languages: English, Spanish, Cantonese and Tagalog, to cater to the large Hispanic and Latino American and Asian American populations in San Francisco. Bus and trolleybus lines are identified by a number and a route name that typically incorporates the street on which the route operates its longest segment.

Rail lines have letters as well as a name designation (J-Church, K-Ingleside, L-Taraval, M-Ocean View, N-Judah, T-Third), and the three cable car lines are typically referred to by name only (Powell-Mason, Powell-Hyde and California). The longest Muni line is the 24.1-mile (38.8 km) 91 Owl, a nighttime-only route that blends several other routes together, while the longest daytime route is the 17.4-mile (28.0 km) 29. The shortest route is the peak-hour only 88 BART Shuttle at 1.4 miles (2.3 km), while the shortest off-peak route is the 39 Coit at 1.6 miles (2.6 km).

The steepest grade climbed by a Muni vehicle is 23.1% by a diesel-electric hybrid bus on the 67 line, 22.8% by a trolleybus on the 24 line and 21% by a cable car on the Powell-Hyde line.

Reader's Guide

Except for cable cars, cash fares are $3.00 for adults; $1.50 for seniors over 65, people with disabilities, and Medicare card holders; and free for low- and moderate-income seniors, youth aged 18 and under, and people with disabilities residing in San Francisco. Clipper card and MuniMobile fares are $2.85 for adults and $1.40 for seniors and people with disabilities. One fare entitles a rider to unlimited vehicle transfers for the next 120 minutes.

Cable cars are $9 one way, with no transfers, unless the rider has a Muni Passport or a Muni monthly pass. As of August 2025, monthly passes cost $86 for adults ($104 with BART privileges within city limits), $43 for low-income residents ("Lifeline Pass"), or $43 for seniors and people with disabilities. Muni operates 14 express lines, 5 Rapid lines, and 12 Owl lines, which run between 1 am and 5 am. For San Francisco Giants games, additional "baseball shuttles" supplement N Judah and T Third service to Oracle Park.

Muni also operates the San Francisco cable car system, a heritage streetcar system descendant of a larger network of manually operated cable cars. The system was designated a National Historic Landmark in 1964 and placed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1966. There are three cable car lines: the Mason-Powell line, the California State line, and the Powell-Hyde line. The system accrues five million annual riders.

Did You Know?

• At Powell and Market Streets, three types of rail gauges come within a few hundred feet of each other: BART's 5 ft 6 in broad gauge, Muni Metro's 4 ft 8+1⁄2 in standard gauge, and the cable car system's 3 ft 6 in narrow gauge.
• The Geary corridor has an average speed of only 8 miles per hour (13 km/h), taking over 50 minutes to travel from the Richmond District to the Transbay Terminal.