Amanda Bartlett
San Francisco Chronicle
SAN FRANCISCO — Just hours before SFMTA bus drivers halted service for eight minutes and 46 seconds to symbolically memorialize the life of George Floyd, the transit agency made another monumental decision.
As several demonstrations continued to take place throughout the Bay Area on Tuesday, Muni announced it would no longer transport officers from the San Francisco Police Department to protests.
“The idea for the memorial was suggested by one of our transportation controllers in our Transportation Management Center,” said Erica Kato, a spokesperson for Muni. “We’ve been engaged in conversations with our staff, and that has given us the opportunity to reflect on what we can do to support our staff and black and brown community, and turn words into action.”
This news comes after the transit agency was criticized on social media for videos uploaded by users showing officers in riot gear departing packed buses in downtown San Francisco earlier this month.
“We transport everyone at MTA and make sure our services are available for critical needs,” SFMTA responded at the time. “From the COVID+ patients we transported to health care and rooms to SFPD officers, Muni is for everyone. To be clear, no Muni vehicles or employees will be used to transport any detainee.”