With little slippage in the expected completion date for San Francisco’s Transbay/Salesforce Transit Center over the past month, the target opening date for the new center and its 5.4-acre rooftop park has been unofficially set for August 12, 2018.

Keep in mind that the opening date assumes no major issues are discovered during final inspections, which are currently slated commence in mid-June. And as we first reported and detailed last month, rail service to the new center isn’t likely to be operational until 2030, at the earliest.

We’ll continue to keep you posted and plugged-in.

31 thoughts on “Target Opening Day for the Salesforce / Transbay Transit Center Set”
      1. This will make a huge difference to people taking the transbay buses. The current terminal slows down travel times immensely.

        1. definitely – but not because of the terminal, because of the direct-freeway-connection ramp. That was really the only worth-while thing from the old terminal.

          1. Actually the design of the temporary terminal is itself a major cause of delays. The ridiculous concentric, counter-rotating loops with three pedestrian crossings are ridiculous. There was at least once occasion when the whole scheme became hopelessly gridlocked with itself and every line was delays for almost an hour while they unwound it.

    1. While leases have yet to be inked for any of the 35 retail/service/restaurant spots, one (1) is close to being signed, two (2) are being drafted (for coffee shops), and twenty-four (24) letters of interest have been traded.

    2. They should offer free rent and build-out to Beale Street Bar and Grill whose building was removed for terminal construction

  1. So that date (aug 12) will make it just over 8 years from when the old terminal was closed (aug 7 2010).

  2. I don’t know nutin about nutin, but that photo is underwhelming. Given all the hype and time it took, I expected an urban Jurassic Park.

  3. One can hope that RM3 passes so we can get Caltrain there too! The retail downstairs won’t be that lucrative until we have the rail.

    1. This terminal is a huge waste of money without caltrain or even amtrak (tunnel under bay to eastshore rail). For the amount of money they have budgeted for ‘security’ of the new terminal, they could have spent a quarter of that on the old terminal and made it relatively decent all this time.

      1. The problem with that rational statement is that it does not provide an irrational reason to increase surrounding height limits.

        Luckily, we live in a city of consistent governance where the supervisors happily spend billions on a terminal for buses powered by oil, and simultaneously demand SF retirement systems divest from oil companies.

  4. Anyone care to guess how many days is will take for the entire building to reek of urine? I hope they have already planned a massive budget for custodial services.

    1. I suspect that was palmed off on Salesforce as part of the deal for slapping its name on the place.

  5. I’m actually curious to note what the average time reduction for AC Transit buses will be now that they no longer get stuck on red lights.

    Motorists should also appreciate extra space freed from the buses.

    1. Having ridden AC transit into the old terminal, I can say the temporary one easily takes 3-5 mins longer, but it can be a LOT longer on game days.

      In addition I would presume that they would get rid of the ‘bus only’ lane on folsom and essex, restoring them to their original state which should allow for more cars to navigate.

  6. The only downside is that after the move, there’ll be the largest area of SF that has no transit. The area bounded by 2nd Street, Brannan, Embarcadero and Mission will not have any bus stop except at perimeter. I bet you’d have to go out all the way into the Avenues to find a larger area.

    1. Look at the ground level between Fremont and Beale. A diesel MUNI stop is already in operation on the north side and MUNI trolley wires are strung along the south side past a number of new shelters (not yet operational).

      1. I guess my point is that the new terminal is further away from Rincon hill, so for example, on corner of Harrison & Main there’s no transit what so ever. Trying to get anywhere from there requires a hike all the way over to Mission & Beal. Sort of ironic given that corner of Folsom & Main has 3 set of highrise towers going up.

  7. I had hoped for a mid-june opening, but these days, nothing surprises me. Bear in mind, the electrified Caltrain, and HSR projects are 2 of the largest in California & San Francisco in particular.

    I don’t agree w/that ridiculous 2030 HSR opening date. According to latest predictions (yes i know, subject to change and future cost overruns), the combines electrified Caltrain and HSR (along w/rumored capital corridor access into sf too into the sf transbay ctr), should occur between fy 2023-2026. Future HSR expansion to Sacramento is slated to occur (so they say!) Around fy 2026-2027.

    Let’s hope for the best & good luck w/the sf transbay center grand opening on sunday august 12th, 2018. Bear in mind the businesses will not fully have economic gains until electrified Caltrain and HSR roll into the facility. That’s a fact.

    Always remember this is the largest infrastructure project in california & hsr is playing catchup w/european high-speed train systems. Sadly it takes a long time to finish this project, better late than never i guess. Get that funding ready! 66 billion dollars for total hsr costs. Oh boy, fasten your seat belts.

    1. I don’t think HSR will ever be completed and there will certainly be no HSR at the station in 2023. I think the Caltrain date of 2030 sounds about right. So at least there will be some trains. Probably.

  8. The homeless will take over and ruin it within months. Every place they congregate becomes a pigsty, in this case it will be a very expensive pigsty.

  9. This is a vanity project, all be it an enormously expensive one. Since the temporary terminal across the street is working just fine, and train service is 20+ years out, whether it opens this year or next has zero impact on public transportation.

  10. yeah, until the next delays. there you have construction in this country: delay and reap $$$. and if the [people] fighting high speed rail would get a clue, this thing might work.

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