Photo by James Conrad
Established in 1873, San Francisco’s cable car system is a symbol of the City. By 1890, there were 23 lines running. Today, only three lines remain, serving as commuter transit for some locals and a tourist attraction that draws millions of people from all over the world to experience the last remaining manually operated public transit system on Earth.
In addition to the novelty of experiencing something from a bygone era, perhaps another appeal of the cable cars is the adrenaline rush that comes with navigating a steep hill in a rolling box without seatbelts, kind of like a slow-motion rollercoaster.
Although the cable cars are among San Francisco's top tourist attractions, in 2019, it cost $70 million per year to operate the three remaining lines, despite the fact that they only generated about $24 million in revenue, according to data from the Cato Institute.
On 21 April 2016, the San Francisco Municipal Transit Authority, or Muni for short, issued a press release stating that its Board of Directors unanimously approved a balanced budget to cover a projected shortfall of over $600 million for the next two fiscal years resulting from a decline in commuters since the outbreaks of the coronavirus. As of this writing, Muni’s ridership is only 75 percent of what it was pre-pandemic.
If the City's Board of Supervisors approves the budget, the fare for a single ride will be raised from $9 to $12 effective 4 January 2027, and by the following year the fare would be raised $6 more to $18, doubling its current cost.
Photo by James Conrad
Although Muni expects the increased fares to cover its budget deficit, over the years, increasing fare for the cable cars has undercut ridership. Back in 2005, then-mayor Gavin Newsom expressed concerns that raising the fare would discourage people from riding the cable cars.
However, to mitigate the cost for the general public, the $18 fare effective in 2028 will grant riders unlimited travel on the three cable car lines and all other Muni services via a Cable Car Plus pass. The Board of Supervisors has asked that the pass be valid for one adult and up to two youths aged 18 years or younger.
In addition to a decrease in riders in the wake of the coronavirus pandemic, fewer people are riding the cable cars due to an overall decline in foreign visitors to the United States, resulting from tariffs driving up the cost of food and hotel supplies along with unnecessarily harsh immigration policies.
The Board of Supervisors is expected to vote on including the new policy in the City's budget after Mayor Daniel Lurie submits it to them on 1 May 2026.
