sfenvironment.org

SF Unveils Solar Bus Stop--SolarBuzz

(June 2, 2009)

Mayor Gavin Newsom and the San Francisco Municipal Transportation Agency (SFMTA) have unveiled San Francisco’s first solar transit shelter at the corner of Geary and Arguello boulevards. The new shelter is the first of at least 1,100 that will replace existing shelters around the City.

The installation comes after a two-year process to develop, design and fabricate the new shelters, which were created with the SFMTA's transit shelter advertising and maintenance contractor, Clear Channel Outdoor, in partnership with the San Francisco-based architecture team Lundberg Design.

"San Franciscans who are waiting for their bus or streetcar to arrive will be pleasantly surprised when they see the new transit shelters we're putting in across the City," said Mayor Newsom. "Not only do they incorporate environmental sustainability in their design, they’re just plain smart. Transit shelters that use photovoltaics, LEDs, and WiFi are going to be standard in the future--and I’m proud that San Francisco is once again acting like the pacecar for other cities by trying and implementing these technologies."

"The SFMTA is grateful for Mayor Newsom’s leadership and the hard work of our partners to make the new shelters a reality," said SFMTA Executive Director/CEO Nathaniel P. Ford Sr. "We want these shelters to greet our customers with a friendly red wave, accurate and timely information, and a clean, well-lighted space to catch their Muni route or line."

"Clear Channel Outdoor is pleased to have the opportunity to create and maintain these new shelters, which are an integral part of San Francisco’s streetscape," said Bill Hooper, President/General Manager of Clear Channel Outdoor's Northern California Region. "We are proud to be working with the SFMTA and the talented design team at Lundberg Design to bring San Francisco its next generation of transit shelters."

San Francisco's new transit shelters have more information than the ones they are replacing. Each shelter will have two maps and a larger space for transit information. As NextMuni signs become available, each shelter will have both the NextMuni display as well as the accompanying Push-To-Talk system to read the NextMuni information for those who are visually impaired. The seating placement and design allow access for all customers under the shelters most distinctive design element: the "Seismic Wave" canopy.

The red undulating top makes the shelters easily recognizable. In addition, the new transit shelters reflect the SFMTA's and San Francisco’s commitment to environmental sustainability. More than half of Muni's fleet is comprised of zero-emissions vehicles, and now the stops for these vehicles will be just as sustainable. Many of the new transit shelters, including the one at Geary and Arguello, will use third generation organic-dye-based photovoltaic solar film to power the shelter lights and information systems.

This patented technology uses a film that contains no heavy metals unlike typical silicon-based solar panels from Konarka. The design team developed a process to encapsulate the solar film material between sheets of plastic made of 40 percent post-industrial recycled content. The structure of the new shelters uses steel with a high-recycled content, usually between 60 and 70 percent, as well as energy-efficient light-emitting diodes (LEDs). The old florescent lights in the current shelters use 336 watts; the new LED panels use only 74.4 watts, making them four and a half times more energy efficient.

The new solar shelter at Geary and Arguello is also testing WiFi connectivity to better enable Muni customers with mobile devices or laptops to use the Internet. If the test is successful, Clear Channel and the SFMTA could add WiFi to other new shelters in the City. After the initial five shelters are installed, the SFMTA and Clear Channel will work together to see if any remaining design issues need to be addressed.

After that review--and by the end of the summer--the team will develop a plan and timeline for installing the 1,100 new shelters at existing locations as expeditiously as possible, but no later than the end of 2013. The agreement also provides for the possibility of 400 additional transit shelters at new locations around San Francisco.

The SFMTA's transit shelter advertising and maintenance contract with Clear Channel will generate at least $300 million for the SFMTA over the 20-year term of the contract.