»In which we need to get to the J-Church on time

From the June issue of the Noe Valley Voice, something priceless and amusing:

Like the J-Church line itself, the project to determine just what makes Noe Valley's main train late has fallen behind schedule. In a memo issued May 8, the team in charge of the J-Church Pilot Project announced that it required a six-week extension because the opening of the new T-line had caused problems with rail operator availability and schedule changes.

According to the memo, which was signed by TEP Program Manager Julie Kirschbaum and Chief Operations Officer Kenneth McDonald, "Reports from regular J-Church riders...indicated that the first weeks of the [three-month] pilot were a success. They observed more trains, shorter headways, and greater reliability on the J-Church Line."

During the week of April 1, on-time performance averaged 72.5 percent, with 84 percent of trains on time during the morning commute. Unfortunately, that success soon ground to a halt. During the week of April 19, on-time performance reached a low of 55.9 percent.

The team believes that it can evaluate improvements to the J-Church line after the complications due to the T-line are addressed, so they plan to re-evaluate the J-Church Pilot Project in early September instead of mid-July. Anyone who has questions about the extension should contact Kirschbaum at 701-4305.