MUNI – 22 Fillmore

I’m updating my 22-​Fillmore review because the Muni powers that be eliminated two outbound stops in Potrero Hill about a year ago: at the southwest corner of 16^th & Kansas Streets and 17^th Street near Wisconsin Street.
I’ve never used either stop, so their removal hasn’t really affected me, but the Wisconsin one just doesn’t make much sense. It’s near Jackson Playground, and there always seemed to be kids hopping on here to ride the bus home up the hill. There are other stops nearby, but if the point of stop removal is to speed the bus along, why not remove other redundant stops on 17^th Street that aren’t near anything rather than a stop next to a park? The Kansas one is also slightly confusing, but mostly to people who were used to getting off the bus there. The first few months, people would be yelling at the driver every time he or she made that right turn without stopping, but now, they just wait until the bus turns again at 17^th Street and schlep backwards.
I was going to drop my rating down to three stars, but then I reread my original review, which is much better than this one, and I persuaded myself to change my own mind – or not to change my own mind, depending on how I look at it.
The 22 is a decent line. It has its share of crazies and pickpockets, especially in the Mission and the Castro, but I’m always happy when it arrives at the southwest corner of 16^th & Mission Streets even though it takes way too long for everyone to come out the front door. What’s that all about, anyway? I get that old people like to exit from the front, but why does everyone and her child and her niece and her niece’s boyfriend have to come lumbering out the front as slowly as is humanly possible?

This is a busy bus line! I feel like it needs backup, or maybe some of those stretchy-​double busses? Maybe the streets on this route are too narrow for the super busses? All I’m saying is that if you find yourself on a 22 and you aren’t also having a personal space crisis you’re probably north of Geary.
It’s also hella slow. Which is sort of nice because I was able to read my book without the waves of nausea that come from riding on other lines. I had a seat in the back as did the dog (and backpack) of one of our local urban adventurers. Although the canine’s man-​companion did seem a little sauced for 11AM, he was actually vocalizing some of my thoughts as I turned page after page after page such as «The 22 is the slowest gawddamn bus line in the city!»
It’s good to find common ground.

love the fillmore line it tocks

I don’t ride on the 22 bus line no more. I will only take the 22 bus to the store and back to my old place, once in a while.

For someone who doesn’t live in San Francisco I ride this bus a lot. It runs near where I stay in the Church Station area and it links me to Japantown, an area I always feel drawn to (thats another review though).
I have good luck on this bus. I always seem to score a seat. and I like to watch the neighborhoods pass one by one.
I also catch it back a lot. I when I go to the Fishermans Wharf area I like to walk along the bay to the Marina Neighborhood. Then I can catch the 22 back to Church station.
It also runs into the Mission District with all the things that go on there. So yes, I ride it a lot. and I like its convenience, and its views.

The Muni number 22 bus line is a shrug of the shoulder. It goes through much of the Mission District and some adjacent areas. As usual, prices are low but the crowd is packed.
I went here in order to find Dolores Park. It was very crowded on a Sunday afternoon. I did get a seat at the front where disable people can sit, but I have empathy for the weekday riders.
This line is par for what it does.

Well, most of us who know how to write using correct spelling and syntax have enough clarity of mind to write descriptively of the 22 experience. It’s an adventure that we wear like a merit badge of courage — yes, we are survivors and we like to share what we have endured.
I could tell you several stories about the Fillmore bus but for now I will only recount one that I still can’t get out of my head. One afternoon I boarded a 22 and thought I was in luck. Aha! A free seat! Perfect… I’d been walking up and down hills and wanted to sit on my ride south to Dolores Park. I come to the seat and was about to plop myself down and then I saw it. There on the seat, someone left a bloody lump of gauze and bandage. Just wadded up the damn thing and laid it on the seat, like it was a dainty corsage placed neatly on a chair at a dinner party. I noticed a few drops of blood on the floor below the seat, one the size of a dime.
How nice. Yes, I am in the most beautiful large city in America. Which also happens to be home to many of the most disgusting people on earth. Like the aimless members of the filthy tribe, the ones who ride BART all day long, always leaving a reeking part of themselves behind so the rest of us can’t ignore that they were there.

Most of us who know how to write using correct spelling and syntax have the clarity of mind to write descriptively about the 22. It’s an adventure that we wear like a badge of courage — yes, we are survivors and we like to share what we have endured.
I could tell you several stories about this bus but for now I will only recount one that I can’t get out of my head. One afternoon I boarded a 22 and thought «Aha! A free seat! Perfect.» I’d been walking up and down hills and wanted to sit on my ride to Dolores Park. I come to the seat and was about to plop myself down and then I saw it. There on the seat, someone left a bloody lump of gauze and bandage. The damn thing wadded up and placed on the seat, like it was a dainty corsage set on a chair at a dinner party. I noticed a few drops of blood on the floor below the seat, one the size of a dime.
Yes, I am in the most beautiful large city in America. It also happens to be home to many of the most disgusting people on earth. Like the aimless members of the Filthy Tribe, the ones who ride BART all day long, always leaving a reeking part of themselves behind so we can’t ignore that they were there.

This review is specifically for Ramone, the driver for bus #5442 on this line. I catch him on my morning commute Outbound to Potrero and he is the nicest guy ever. He is so genuine and when I had a huge pan of cupcakes this morning he made sure I sat down first before he drove the bus to the next stop. When he sees his friends along the route he is so pleasant it’s contagious! What a difference it makes to have a 40 min. ride on his bus vs. others.

So this bus could use more frequency. A lot of interesting people ride this bus especially past 16^th and mission. + 1 star cause it runs all night

Muni 22 gets stars because the bus drivers are resilient and put up with a lot of crap, and the bus traverses a lot of neighborhoods and gets us around. Besides that, between Potrero Hill and Japantown, without fail there is either
–an aggressive mentally ill person freaking out
–a high person freaking out
–someone sick
–teenage mean girls are swearing and gossiping loudly about a classmate
–people are crammed in trying not to topple on each other at each stop.
Example: Last week– I get on the bus on 18^th and Connecticut. It’s 11:00am on a weekday. A little girl and her nanny get on. Two blocks later the little girl vomits cherry colored vomit on the floor. Next stop, she and her nanny exit. I tell the bus driver, but he can’t stop right yet. Potrero Avenue, bus goes out of commission to be cleaned. Wait another several minutes for a bus. It arrives. Over the next six blocks two individiuals in wheel chairs get on and off which takes quite a while. At 16^th Street a crush of people get on. A few blocks later, I was close enough to my destination and just got off.

The deuce deuce… or as I like to say, «the little bus that could».
Look, sometimes it smells like urine. And you’ll learn a lot about snitchin’ from eavesdropping. That being said, this is one of the most absurdly convenient lines in the entire northeast quadrant of the city. This bus drops you off in the heart of the Marina, Cow Hollow, Pac Heights, Lower Pac Heights, Western Addition, Lower Haight, Duboce Triangle, Castro, Mission (Dolores Park, 16^th, Valencia, Mission, AND the industrial area), Portrero Hill, Dogpatch. There could not be a more convenient line for the happening neighborhoods of the city… and if none of those strike your fancy, get off at 16^th and Mission, and take BART with your Clipper Card up to Civic Center, SOMA, Union Square, Financial, Embarcadero/​Waterfront.
In short, if you want to hit up any of the best corridors for restaurants, nightlife, or shopping, this line will take you there. It runs frequently, and is rarely late.
Sketch factor? If you are a dude, the worst that will happen is that you will hear a drunk homeless man sing Baby Bash for half the ride. If you are a girl, it’s a little worse, as said homeless man will sing said Baby Bash songs in your ear, but just move over a seat and you’ll be fine… although he won’t stop singing.
I still wouldn’t take it in the wee hours.

Waited for 30 minutes despite comming 5 min before scheduled time

In the span of one month, I have almost gotten into 3 fistfights on this bus. I am not a violent person but this bus carries the worst of the worst. It contains ignorant a-​holes that live to molest you, hit you with their cheap, plastic handbags, scream «where you at» repeatedly into their phones, and start sh*t with people. Oh, and driver’s are not immune to this behavior, either. We got some winners in the morning.
Every morning I want to scream «SOCIAL CONTRACT, AS$HOLES!» at the top of my lungs at the rudeness and bs that occurs daily on this bus from Satan’s a$hole.
I am seriously just eating rice and beans to save up for a car so I can drive to work and avoid this bus.

This bus is a rolling douche apocalypse. This bus actually stops on every single corner between Mission St (or whereever the hell it starts) and the Marina. I have never been on this bus when someone hasn’t
–reeked of booze,
–having a conversation with themselves,
–was smoking their marijuana,
–someone blaring rap music at full blast and singing along
–the crackhead with the «I am a victim of domestic violence and only need $ 10 bucks for a room for the night» speech to the whole bus
BUT, the all time favorite — when a homeless guy faked a seizure, then tried to pickpocket the guy who was coming to his aid.
The tough thing was I used to take this in lieu of a cab from 16^th and Valencia all the way to Fillmore and Union. It absolutely sucked!!! I actually did chat up some girls coming home from the Marina on here a couple times and ended up getting a couple numbers, amazingly

This line goes right by my house and connects to places I frequent.
Q: So why do I almost never use it?
A: It’s the speed.
Don’t get me wrong, the 22 can be enjoyable due to the cast of characters that ride it – particularly «Muni Ray Charles.»
But for actually getting somewhere at a reasonable pace this line is worthless. I’ve spent many nights walking home from Bottom of the Hill without being passed by a single 22. And those rare times I do get on, I wish I’d opted for walking.

The Muni 22…
One of the more frequent running lines, The 22 Fillmore is actually not bad at all. There’s all sorts of characters on this bus and it’s almost entertaining. You’ll definitely get a taste of every niche of San Francisco just by taking this line and not to mention it highlights the Jazz District «Fillmore.»
I actually like this line, if you need to be some where though, leave early, you’re in for a commute.

Ah, c’mon guys she’s not all bad.
What I like about this line is the different demographics it picks up; Yuppy 30 somethings from Potrero Hill, Trendy kids in Hayes/​Castro, Juvenile delinquents in the western addition, Japanese grandmothers from Japantown, Bros and assorted ladies who lunch in Pacific heights/​the Marina.
When they all get on a bus together what do you get?
A city!

Ugh, please kill me. I think the lady on the Rascal Scooter along the sidewalk will make it to my destination before I will…

4 stars because:
— consistent frequency
— friendly drivers
Typically, this bus tends to be busy from 16^th and Potrero to Fillmore and Geary. After that it’s calm. If you need to get to Potrero Center or Japantown, then the 22 Fillmore is here for you.

The 22 is the epitome of a great bus. It travels a L shaped loop around the center of the city, which means it’s highly accessible and a great bus to make connections, such as the K, L, M lines (Church Station), J Church, T Third Street, N Judah, 16^th/​Mission BART, and the 38, just to name a few. Holy s***, it’s probably the only bus line that connects all of the metro lines.
So, it may not travel through the safest parts of the city (which goes for 95% of Muni buses), but it totally does its job and puts other bus lines to shame *COUGH*49 Van Ness-​Mission.
I’m gonna be generous and dish out a 5 star for the 22 Fillmore because it’s truly «as good as it gets» in terms of Muni buses. It’s my first choice to make transfers (within the center of the city) and I don’t know what I’d do without it. (Check out the cool bus stop at Fillmore and Geary!)

The other day, I heard someone giving someone else directions to the Marina from where I live near Church and Duboce. She recommended taking the 22, «sketch as it is.»
Sketch as it is? Is that code for «with brown people?» WTF?
I take this bus every day, often multiple times a day. In the morning, I take it to Mission 16^th BART, even though I could take the N or J instead, or even any of the undergrounds at Church. But I’d rather press up against folks on the 22 than deal with the downtown-​commuting iPhone addicts on the rails, any day.
On the 22, when someone bumps into you, they say, «Excuse me.» People get up (no matter how drunk they are) to give seats to women with children and to disabled people and to elderly people and to just tired people too sometimes.
Also, the other day, when someone DIDN’T say excuse me for bumping into someone else on the 22, one of the frequent riders started yelling at him, «What happened to ‘Excuse me’? What happened to ‘Pardon me’? WE ARE ALL EQUAL ON THE BUS.»
So true. Amen.

There used to be a perfectly fine bus shelter here. One of the old style with 3 walls and 3 seats along with a nice map to help you find your way around. It was so nice because this has to be one of the WINDIEST intersections ever.
Well just last month they decided it would be a good idea to replace this perfectly good and working shelter with one of the new ones with the wavy roofs. This would have been fine with me if it had retained the functionality of the old one…
The new bus shelter is nothing but one glass wall with a small roof. ONE WALL. No seats, no protection from the elements, no map, no NextMuni service. NOTHING! It boggles my mind why they would take out a good, working bus shelter to replace it with a dysfunctional wall. I have to stand at this shelter everyday on my commute to and from school and it is FREEZING with no place to sit! At least give us some benches! :(

Friday night:
Four 22s passes within 10 mins by between Fillmore and Hayes.
Saturday night:
Displayed on Nextbus by 16^th and Valencia: 17min & 67min
Couple of girls glances and says, «Let’s walk it!» :-/