Computer Glitch -- Tunnel Closed!!!

I knew it as I approached 17th and Market... that crowd standing at the F-line terminal could only mean one thing. Yep -- The station agent at Castro announced a "computer software glitch" had seized the entire Muni tunnel. No trains in either direction, good luck getting anywhere this morning.

Judging the size of the crowd at the terminus, I decided I'd race the F-line on foot, and hoofed it down Market street. The mass of people on the sidewalk were all walking the same direction I was. Two women chatted me up along the way -- "Nice day for a walk anyway, eh?"

I was well ahead of the F-line until Octavia, when it finally overtook me. But alas, by the time I hit Gough street I was ahead again as the crammed rail car got stuck behind an overcrowded bus. I love the cute little trains in midday when they aren't crowded, but when they get packed in like today, without any ventilation systems, those little trains are really uncomfortable. When I arrived at my destination near Van Ness Avenue, the train had just pulled ahead again, beating me by about 45 seconds.

Some thoughts for the proponents of Muni's expensive toy railroad, sometimes called the Market Street Railway:

• F-line streetcars are very slow -- I almost beat the train in my walk from Castro to Van Ness
  
• F-line streetcars are surprisingly low capacity, compared to the Breda cars and certainly compared to BART
  
• You cannot base a real, modern city's transit system on such old technology and expect residents to be well-served. Maybe it's nice for the tourists
  

I'll see if I can find out what exactly happened to tunnel service today and will update if I get anything.