New Transit Added to Marin Headlands

Date: November 20, 2012

Transit to the Marin Headlands will be Doubled as of November 24

Saturday service added between San Francisco and the Marin Headlands in Golden Gate National Parks

San Francisco, CA- The National Park Service (NPS) and San Francisco Municipal Transportation Agency (SFMTA) have partnered to expand bus service to the Marin Headlands in Golden Gate National Recreation Area.

Beginning November 17, San Francisco Muni Route 76 weekend service from San Francisco to the Marin Headlands will expand to include Saturdays in addition to Sundays, and will be renamed the 76X Marin Headlands Express. Route 76X will provide bus service for park visitors and employees from the Montgomery BART Station in San Francisco, with limited stops in the city, to the beach, hiking trails, Fort Barry Hostel, and the Marine Mammal Center in the Marin Headlands.

The 76X Marin Headlands Express will operate as a pilot project for 24 months to allow Muni to test the effectiveness of service changes to address travel time and reliability, and test ridership demand for expanded service to Marin on Saturdays. As part of the pilot, SFMTA staff will collect data about the route's reliability, ridership, and customer satisfaction to assess benefits of the change.

"This is an exciting advancement for our commitment to reducing the carbon impact of these parks on the Bay Area, and our dedication to serving the public," said Superintendent Frank Dean. "We want people to have the opportunity to get to these amazing parklands and enjoy themselves, and this increased schedule allows for people to really take advantage of being so close by while making it even more affordable."

The pilot includes more limited stop spacing in the city than Route 76 had, and discontinues the portion of the route south of Market Street to Caltrain to address reliability issues.

"Thanks to NPS, we have a unique opportunity to improve our 76 bus service to the Marin Headlands," said Ed Reiskin, SFMTA Director of Transportation. "We're glad to have this opportunity to enhance San Franciscans' access to this beautiful part of the Bay Area. This pilot also will provide invaluable data about travel time savings and reliability improvements that will inform future implementation of the Transit Effectiveness Project on other routes around the city."

Route 76 service first began in 1976, and is designed to offer a way for people to reach the Marin Headlands without the use of private vehicles. In addition to weekend service, Route 76X will continue to offer holiday service on Jan. 1, Memorial Day, July 4, Labor Day, Thanksgiving, and Christmas. The fare for using this bus service is the standard $2 per adult each way; all special fare rules pertain to this route.

Visitors camping and hiking in the Marin Headlands are encouraged to use the bus to start their trip. All bicycles, hiking gear, and other outdoor gear can be brought onto the buses.  

This is a long-term extension of this schedule. Please visit www.sfmta.com/munipilots and look at information for Route 76X for a full schedule and details.