Bus bulbs can speed Muni up during peak hours.

On many routes, the slowest weekday run is tens of minutes longer than the fastest. That padding is the problem. Bus bulbs—sidewalks that reach the travel lane—are one concrete way to claw time back.

See it on a route
Animation of a bus stopping at a bus bulb: the sidewalk extends to the travel lane so the bus does not pull in or merge back out.
What a bus bulb does: the bus stops in the lane—no pull-in, no wait to merge. Research shows time savings per stop to be between 15–30 seconds. Source. GIF credit: TransLink.
01

The problem

Pick a route. Compare the fastest and slowest full runs.

Same line, weekday timetable. The gap is how much longer a “bad” trip is allowed to take—and where schedule padding shows up.

Loading SFMTA schedule…

Scheduled run time · —

—

    02

    The fix

    Price bus bulbs on that route.

    Assume bulbs at the busiest stops. Research often credits about 15–30 seconds per visit from skipping the curb pull-in and merge.

    25%
    5%100%
    20 sec
    5 sec45 sec
    $40,000
    $10k$100k

    1. 1. Total capital cost
      —
    2. 2. Annual operating savings
      —
    3. 3. Return on investment in time
      —

    Operating savings are capacity value, not automatic cash. They become budget savings when enough time is cut from schedules to reduce recovery time, overtime, or buses needed.

    Where bus bulbs could go

    —

    Selected for bulbs Other route stops

    Starts with the most frequently served stops. Each direction counts as a separate stop.

    03

    All routes

    Where the schedule gap is biggest.

    Largest gap between fastest and slowest full weekday runs in either direction. Click a row to inspect that route.

    Route Direction Time between fastest & slowest % increase potential

    04 · Method & sources

    How the numbers are built.

    Schedule spreadslowest full run − fastest full run (minutes, %, first-stop departures)
    Capitalselected stops × cost per bulb
    Annual operating savingsweekday visits × seconds ÷ 3,600 (sec → hours) × 255 (weekdays / year) × NTD $/hour
    Paybackcapital ÷ annual operating savings

    Service: SFMTA GTFS weekday schedule. Full runs = the longest stop pattern that appears at least five times per direction (short-turns excluded).

    Operating costs: 2024 NTD SFMTA profile — $301.60 / motor-bus revenue-hour, $281.30 / trolleybus.

    Bus-bulb effect: Default 20 seconds sits in the 15–30 second range (FHWA-NJ-2003-015); see also NACTO and TCRP Report 65.

    Capital cost: Planning range about $15,000–$70,000 per bulb (PEDSAFE). Default $40,000.

    SFMTA GTFS derivative notice: Reproduced with permission granted by the City and County of San Francisco. The information is provided “as is,” without warranty. Data provided by SFMTA / City and County of San Francisco.