SFMTA: first issuance of 2014 transportation bond under way; second issuance planned

Monique Webster, senior manager of capital finance at the San Francisco Municipal Transportation Agency, told the committee the 2014 Transportation and Road Improvement Bond authorizes $500,000,000 across eight project categories. She said SFMTA has issued $66,000,000 to date; from that issuance the agency reported $22,000,000 in expenditures as of June 30 and about $17,000,000 encumbered for a combined roughly 60% of the first issuance.

Sean Kennedy (SFMTA) reviewed recent project milestones: a transit boarding island completed at Eleventh and Harrison, curb work done at Mission and Turnbull, and several corridor projects under construction (Chestnut, 5 Fulton, Judah between Arguello and Ninth). Kennedy said Judah work has begun and will be a roughly two‑year construction project; 5 Fulton is projected to be completed by April 2018.

Webster told members the agency received a supplemental appropriation moving $26,200,000 of the first issuance into facilities upgrades to accelerate construction‑ready projects, and that SFMTA is working with the comptroller and mayor’s offices on a second issuance currently estimated at about $184,000,000 to cover all eight categories and roughly 37 projects.

Committee members pressed SFMTA on change orders, rebids driven by LBE goals (the 5 Fulton project was rebid three times), measurable time savings from projects, and effects on small businesses during construction. SFMTA said project‑level before/after travel‑time measures exist and cited an example of ~1 minute 40 seconds of travel‑time savings from a contraflow lane project; the agency also described business working groups and outreach mechanisms to collect and respond to feedback.