Spare the Air program
Encyclopedia
Bay Area Air Quality Management District
The Bay Area Air Quality Management District is a public agency that regulates the stationary sources of air pollution in the nine counties of California's San Francisco Bay Area: Alameda, Contra Costa, Marin, Napa, San Francisco, San Mateo, Santa Clara, southwestern Solano, and southern Sonoma...
in 1991 to combat air pollution
Air pollution
Air pollution is the introduction of chemicals, particulate matter, or biological materials that cause harm or discomfort to humans or other living organisms, or cause damage to the natural environment or built environment, into the atmosphere....
during the summer in the San Francisco Bay Area
San Francisco Bay Area
The San Francisco Bay Area, commonly known as the Bay Area, is a populated region that surrounds the San Francisco and San Pablo estuaries in Northern California. The region encompasses metropolitan areas of San Francisco, Oakland, and San Jose, along with smaller urban and rural areas...
, the season when clear skies, hot temperatures, lighter winds, and a strong temperature inversion combine and trap air pollutants near the ground.
Spare the Air days are declared for days in which levels of ground-level ozone
Tropospheric ozone
Ozone is a constituent of the troposphere . Photochemical and chemical reactions involving it drive many of the chemical processes that occur in the atmosphere by day and by night...
(a constituent of smog
Smog
Smog is a type of air pollution; the word "smog" is a portmanteau of smoke and fog. Modern smog is a type of air pollution derived from vehicular emission from internal combustion engines and industrial fumes that react in the atmosphere with sunlight to form secondary pollutants that also combine...
) are predicted to exceed the EPA
United States Environmental Protection Agency
The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency is an agency of the federal government of the United States charged with protecting human health and the environment, by writing and enforcing regulations based on laws passed by Congress...
's federal health-based standard of 84 ppb, or an air quality index
Air Quality Index
Air quality is defined as a measure of the condition of air relative to the requirements of one or more biotic species or to any human need or purpose. Air quality indices are numbers used by government agencies to characterize the quality of the air at a given location...
over 100. On a Spare the Air day, Bay Area residents are asked through radio
Radio
Radio is the transmission of signals through free space by modulation of electromagnetic waves with frequencies below those of visible light. Electromagnetic radiation travels by means of oscillating electromagnetic fields that pass through the air and the vacuum of space...
and television
Television
Television is a telecommunication medium for transmitting and receiving moving images that can be monochrome or colored, with accompanying sound...
announcements to reduce their driving, refrain from using gas-powered gardening equipment and curb other air polluting activities such as painting and aerosol spray
Aerosol spray
Aerosol spray is a type of dispensing system which creates an aerosol mist of liquid particles. This is used with a can or bottle that contains a liquid under pressure. When the container's valve is opened, the liquid is forced out of a small hole and emerges as an aerosol or mist...
can usage.
People especially sensitive to smog are advised to limit their time outdoors.
Free transportation days
Holiday
A Holiday is a day designated as having special significance for which individuals, a government, or a religious group have deemed that observance is warranted. It is generally an official or unofficial observance of religious, national, or cultural significance, often accompanied by celebrations...
weekdays, many Bay Area transit agencies offer free rides to encourage public transportation use over cars. The number of allocated fare-free days varies from year to year, depending on available funding.
This program's subsidy drew increased media attention in 2006 when the traditional three annual free days jumped to six in response to the number of annual Spare the Air days declared being the highest in seven years.
In past years there have been multiple free transit Spare the Air days. However, in 2008, the number was reduced to only one free transit day, June 19. There is currently no free transit program for 2009 or 2010.
Historically, the following transit providers have participated in the free ride program:
- Altamont Commuter ExpressAltamont Commuter ExpressThe Altamont Commuter Express is a regional rail service in California connecting Stockton with San Jose....
(ACE) - AC TransitAC TransitAC Transit is an Oakland-based regional public transit agency serving the western half of Alameda County and parts of western Contra Costa County in the western, Bay-side area of the East Bay of the San Francisco Bay Area...
- AirBARTAirBARTAirBART is a privately-run shuttle bus service that connects the Bay Area Rapid Transit's Coliseum/Oakland Airport station with Oakland International Airport . Buses stop at street level just outside the BART station and serve both airport terminals with one stop at the airport along the third curb...
- Alameda Harbor Bay FerryAlameda Harbor Bay FerryAlameda Harbor Bay Ferry is a public transportation service that uses a ferry and operates in Alameda, California and San Francisco, California. Providing weekday rush-hour service, the ferry runs from Harbor Bay Ferry Terminal in Alameda's Bay Farm Island area to the Ferry Building in San...
- Alameda-Oakland FerryAlameda-Oakland FerryAlameda/Oakland Ferry is a public transit ferry service connecting Alameda and Oakland to San Francisco via the San Francisco Bay. The City of Alameda local government, which runs the public service together with the Port of Oakland, contracts the privately-run Blue & Gold Fleet to provide the...
- BART
- Benicia Breeze
- CaltrainCaltrainCaltrain is a California commuter rail line on the San Francisco Peninsula and in the Santa Clara Valley in the United States. The northern terminus of the rail line is in San Francisco, at 4th and King streets; its southern terminus is in Gilroy...
- Cloverdale TransitCloverdale TransitCloverdale Transit is a bus agency providing service in the North Bay city of Cloverdale, California.-External links:* - Cloverdale Transit schedules* info at City of Cloverdale...
- County ConnectionCounty ConnectionThe County Connection is a Concord-based public transit agency operating fixed-route bus and ADA paratransit service in and around central Contra Costa County in the San Francisco Bay Area...
- Dumbarton ExpressDumbarton ExpressThe Dumbarton Express is a California bus service operating between Union City BART station and Palo Alto Caltrain station via the Dumbarton Bridge. The service is operated by a group of operators including BART, VTA, Union City Transit, and AC Transit...
- Emery Go RoundEmery Go RoundEmery Go-Round is a zero-fare bus service in Emeryville, California, near Oakland, California. It has three lines that run five days a week, with more limited service on weekends, and no or reduced service on holidays...
(always freeGratis versus LibreGratis versus libre is the distinction between two meanings of the English adjective "free"; namely, "for zero price" and "with little or no restriction"...
) - Fairfield-Suisun Transit
- Golden Gate FerryGolden Gate FerryGolden Gate Ferry is one of three transportation systems owned and operated by the Golden Gate Bridge, Highway and Transportation District. The other two are the Golden Gate Bridge and Golden Gate Transit bus service, which connects San Francisco to Marin County...
- Golden Gate TransitGolden Gate TransitGolden Gate Transit is a public transportation system serving the North Bay region of the San Francisco Bay Area in California, United States. It mainly serves Marin and Sonoma Counties, and also provides limited service to San Francisco and Contra Costa County.Golden Gate Transit is one of three...
- Napa VINE
- San Francisco Muni
- Petaluma TransitPetaluma TransitPetaluma Transit is the public bus service in the city of Petaluma, Sonoma County, California. The system connects with several Sonoma County Transit routes for further travel within the county and Golden Gate Transit routes for travel between the city, Marin County, and San Francisco.Hours of...
- Rio Vista Breeze
- SamTransSamTransSamTrans is a public transport agency in and around San Mateo, California, in the San Francisco Bay Area. It provides bus service throughout San Mateo County and into portions of San Francisco and Palo Alto...
- Santa Rosa CityBusSanta Rosa CityBusSanta Rosa CityBus is a public transportation agency providing bus service in the northern California city of Santa Rosa. It provides service for over 2.8 million passenger trips annually. -Routes:...
- Sonoma County TransitSonoma County TransitSonoma County Transit is a public transportation system based in Sonoma County, California.-Cities and communities served:As the primary bus system in the county, Sonoma County Transit operates to the following communities, listed by zones from south to north:Sonoma Coast and Russian River:*...
- Tri-Delta TransitTri-Delta TransitTri Delta Transit, also known as Eastern Contra Costa Transit Authority, is the local public transportation provider for the eastern area of Contra Costa County in the San Francisco Bay Area of California, U.S.A.. It provides local bus service in the communities of Bay Point, Pittsburg, Antioch,...
- Union City TransitUnion City TransitUnion City Transit is a public transit service in Union City, California, in the San Francisco Bay Area. It began operations in 1974 with the opening of the Union City BART station.The service was formerly known as "the Flea."...
- Vacaville City CoachVacaville City CoachVacaville City Coach runs local fixed route bus service in the city of Vacaville, California. And also provides commuter service to BART in Pleasant Hill and Walnut Creek in addition to job centers there in a consortium including Fairfield/Suisun Transit...
- Vallejo Transit
- VTASanta Clara Valley Transportation AuthorityThe Santa Clara Valley Transportation Authority is a special-purpose district responsible for public transit services, congestion management, specific highway improvement projects, and countywide transportation planning for Santa Clara County, California, United States...
- Napa VINE
- WestCATWestCATWestCAT is a public transportation service in western Contra Costa County . It is a service of the Western Contra Costa Transit Authority....
- Wheels
Criticism of free transportation days
The program has drawn criticism for doing little to alleviate pollution. University of California, BerkeleyUniversity of California, Berkeley
The University of California, Berkeley , is a teaching and research university established in 1868 and located in Berkeley, California, USA...
researcher Aaron Golub calculated the cost per ton of pollution removed as a result of Spare the Air was estimated at $100,000 per ton for nitrogen oxide
Nitrogen oxide
Nitrogen oxide can refer to a binary compound of oxygen and nitrogen, or a mixture of such compounds:* Nitric oxide, also known as nitrogen monoxide, , nitrogen oxide* Nitrogen dioxide , nitrogen oxide...
and hydrocarbons and $10 million per ton for particulate matter, compared to $5,000 and $20,000 per ton respectively for a pollution reduction program. The cost for Spare the Air free fares is about $2 million a day, and MTC has claimed that the goal of the program is not reducing air pollution, but rather as an incentive for people to consider public transit. In addition, the free fares also attract criminal elements. Crime on BART increased, with BART police blaming youths riding for free for fights, assaults, burglaries, and robberies. Calls to BART police spiked by over 100%, compared to a 10% increase in the number of passengers on the same day the previous year. Because of this, BART is considering restricting free rides to only the morning commute.
Riders of ferries also complained about severe overcrowding, with ferry ridership on the Sausalito ferry experiencing a 500% increase from normal and ridership on the Larkspur ferry increasing by 150% from ridership a week previous. Regular riders were turned away. However, some argue that providing free transit has helped spur the economy, by bringing people to San Francisco's shopping district that otherwise would not go.
Criticism of program
As of September 2010, no significant mode shift has been documented based on the program, except on free transit days.External links
- Spare the Air program home page
- Spare the Air frequently asked questions (KGO-TVKGO-TVKGO-TV, channel 7, is an owned-and-operated television station of the Walt Disney Company-owned American Broadcasting Company, based in San Francisco, California...
)