Drunk or sober, ring in 2019 for free on Muni, Caltrain

New Year’s revelers will have plenty of options getting around San Francisco on New Year’s Eve and early into the morning on New Year’s Day.

The San Francisco Municipal Transportation Agency will begin free Muni service starting at 8 p.m. on New Year’s Eve until 5 a.m. on New Year’s Day.

Transit officials are reminding Muni passengers to NOT tag their Clipper card when boarding Muni buses, trains, historic streetcars, and cable cars during the hours of free service.

The SFMTA also plans to run extra Muni Metro service from West Portal Station to Fourth and King streets from 9:00 p.m. to 2:15 a.m., and extra train service from West Portal to Embarcadero stations from 2:15 to 4:00 a.m.

Caltrain is running free service starting after 8 p.m. until the last train leaves the San Francisco station at 2 a.m.

Other Bay Area transit agencies offering free service include AC Transit, SamTrans and VTA starting at 8 p.m. until 5 a.m.

While BART won’t be free on New Year’s Eve, the transit agency will run a special service to and from San Francisco starting at 8:00 p.m. until 3:00 a.m.

BART trains will skip stops heading into downtown San Francisco to avoid overcrowded platforms starting after 8:00 p.m.

BART passengers can visit the schedule on the transit agency’s website for more information.

AAA is offering its Tipsy Tow service to everyone on New Year’s Eve starting at 6 p.m. through 6 a.m. the following morning. The phone number to call is 1-800-222-4357.

Jerold Chinn

Jerold Chinn is the San Francisco Bureau Chief of SFBay. He covers transportation and City Hall. He has spent over a decade covering transportation in San Francisco. Jerold is a native in the city and frequently takes public transit everywhere he goes. Email tips to [email protected]