Breed nominates LGBTQ, safe streets advocate to serve on transit agency board

Mayor London Breed announced Thursday that she nominated LGBTQ and bike safety advocate Jane Natoli to serve on the San Francisco Municipal Transportation Agency’s Board of Directors.

Natoli currently serves as board member of the San Francisco LGBT Center and works for the technology company Stripe as a financial crimes analyst. She would be the first trans person to serve on the SFMTA Board of Directors.

Breed said in a statement:

“She is a leading advocate for safer streets and reliable transit. I am confident that her perspective will benefit the City as we work to achieve our Vision Zero goals and create a more equitable transportation system for all of our residents.”

Natoli moved to San Francisco in 2013 where she became involved in politics and community organizing. She ran for a spot in the Democratic County Central Committee in District 19 in the March election but only received 3.81 percent of the votes, not enough to secure a committee seat.

She also serves as a mayoral appointee on the Citizens’ General Obligation Bond Oversight Committee.

Jeffrey Tumlin, director of transportation of the SFMTA, said in a statement:

“Jane’s day job gives her expertise in financial transparency and analysis. Her community advocacy, however, is where she shines. She brings otherwise unheard voices to the table, especially the most vulnerable users of our transportation system.”

Natoli said in a statement that it is an honor to be nominated by the mayor.

She said:

“I personally know the value of safe streets as someone who has unfortunately been hit three times while biking on our streets, which is why I’ve put so much energy into advocating and supporting SFMTA and Director Tumlin in getting protected bike lanes like Folsom and Howard and car-free stretches like Market implemented throughout San Francisco. I’ve also been proud to support efforts to make our public transit more reliable because everyday San Franciscans deserve a system they can count on that gets them from point A to point B safely and quickly.”

The mayor’s nominee will go through the San Francisco Board of Supervisors Rules Committee process and then to the full board for approval.

Jerold Chinn

Jerold serves as a reporter and San Francisco Bureau Chief for SFBay covering transportation and occasionally City Hall and the Mayor's Office in San Francisco. His work on transportation has been recognized by the San Francisco Press Club. Born and raised in San Francisco, he graduated from San Francisco State University with a degree in journalism. Jerold previously wrote for the San Francisco Public Press, a nonprofit, noncommercial news organization. When not reporting, you can find Jerold taking Muni to check out new places to eat in the city.