Mayor Lurie Announces Record-High Customer Satisfaction Rating

SAN FRANCISCO – Mayor Daniel Lurie today announced new record-high customer satisfaction ratings for San Francisco Municipal Transportation Agency’s (SFMTA) Muni service. In an annual survey, 78% of riders rated Muni service as excellent or good, marking a continued upward trend and the strongest performance in the survey’s 25-year history. The findings reinforce that recent investments in faster, safer, cleaner, and more reliable service are translating into a better rider experience for the more than 500,000 people Muni serves each day.

The high approval ratings from Muni riders build on the mayor’s work to deliver a strong, reliable public transit system—one that is key to driving San Francisco’s economic recovery. As the city makes strides toward an economic recovery, Muni ridership is close to pre-pandemic levels. Overall ridership recovery is nearly surpassing pre-pandemic passenger volumes, with nearly 80% total recovery and 95% on weekends. In December, Mayor Lurie celebrated the launch of tap to pay throughout the entire Muni system. To continue to drive the city’s comeback, the mayor unveiled his “Heart of the City” plan, and more downtown office space is being leased, Union Square retail vacancy is dropping, and workers are returning to the office more quickly in San Francisco than in any other major city. With the addition of tap to pay, an efficient, accessible transit system will drive the next phase of San Francisco’s recovery.

“San Francisco’s recovery is underway, and our economy is moving in the right direction—but to continue that success, we need a strong and reliable transit system,” said Mayor Lurie. “We’re already delivering greater accountability and efficiency for Muni with ridership continuing to climb toward pre-pandemic levels, and these record-high satisfaction ratings show that riders are noticing Muni’s safe, clean vehicles that deliver reliable service across the city. We are going to keep moving forward, and we will continue working with SFMTA to make Muni even more reliable for San Franciscans.”

Record-high satisfaction ratings build on last year’s record-high satisfaction score, with 2024 survey results leading to 72% of San Franciscans rating Muni as excellent or good.  
Satisfaction increased in every part of San Francisco, with the largest gains in neighborhoods such as the Bayview and Excelsior, which saw a 10-point year-over-year improvement. Neighborhoods including the Richmond and Sunset also saw a nine-point increase in satisfaction, with strong ridership on the 38R Geary Rapid and N Judah lines. The survey also found that 69% of riders use Muni at least once per week.

Safety, reliability, and trip time were identified as the most impactful factors driving overall satisfaction. The agency is currently taking steps to find cost-effective ways to optimize service, grow ridership, and reduce maintenance costs.

The 2025 survey found year-over-year improvements across multiple service categories, including:  

• Reliability: 63% (up from 60%)
• Trip Time: 71% (up from 69%)
• Cleanliness: 61% (up from 58%)

Reliability

• To continue moving in a positive direction, Muni is taking steps to improve reliability. Through activities like Fix It! Weeks and updates to the Muni fleet, subway delays have dropped by about 60%.
  • Fix It! Weeks: The preventative maintenance program has proven to be an efficient way to keep the Muni Metro system in a state of good repair and reduce the chance of breakdowns that cause delays for customers and costly repairs.
  • Equipment Upgrades: The new Siemens LRV4 vehicles run three to four times more reliably than the Breda fleet, which was retired in 2025.
• Muni Forward: Throughout the last decade, the Muni Forward program has reached more than 100 miles of improvements, with up to 35% faster travel times on corridors where it’s been implemented benefitting 93% of all Muni riders.  This innovative program brings improvements like transit lanes, dedicated traffic signals, and street safety enhancements.  

Cleanliness
Muni’s cleanliness standards were also raised following the pandemic and have stayed high since. Between regular vehicle cleanings at Muni facilities and a mobile crew to respond to incidents in the field, keeping Muni clean is a top priority for both customers and SFMTA. To keep cleanliness standards improving:

• The 14 Mission Customer Experience Pilot tested new strategies to improve cleanliness and safety, consistently noted as top priorities by customers.
• The pilot delivered noticeable improvements for riders. In just a two-week period, 19% of survey respondents said the buses were cleaner, and 37% of respondents said they felt safer.

In addition to improvements in reliability, trip time, and cleanliness, customers reported a significant nine-point increase year-over-year in safety, reflecting ongoing efforts to improve the environment for riders systemwide.  

• An SFMTA safety initiative has used a customer-driven, four-pronged approach to make adjustments to service, staffing, capital improvements, and public education aimed at making Muni safer. These have made overall system improvements for greater customer safety and a better experience while waiting for Muni.  
• Following the successful pilot on the M Ocean View, the Muni Stop Lighting Project is now expanding citywide this year as it aims to improve lighting at Muni stops for greater customer safety and a better experience while waiting.
• Additionally, 91% of survey respondents who saw a transit ambassador said they felt safer.

“These results confirm that focusing on core service fundamentals works,” said Julie Kirschbaum, SFMTA Director of Transportation. “When we make service more reliable and frequent, and when we improve cleanliness and safety, riders respond. We’re trending in the right direction across nearly every metric that matters most to our customers.”

“All the buses are well-connected, and the transfers are very easy,” said Nochae Park, a frequent transit rider who has ridden every single Muni line. “The frequency during the weekdays allows me to make seamless connections.”

The 2025 Customer Satisfaction Survey was conducted between September 26 and December 7, 2025, and included 563 phone and online interviews with Muni riders.