According to SJMN front page Friday May 8, the Metropolitan Transit Commission is providing I forget how much to support BART to San Jose based on BART and VTA's maybe-money from future toll roads and fees from solo drivers to use the HOV lanes, and from a federal agency who has repeatedly put the project on its "Not Recommended" list. Earliest completion date 2025. Yet Caltrain, here today, is so broke it can't run the minimum number of trains to make it worthwhile. There's something seriously wrong here.

We use Caltrain all the time to go to San Jose and San Francisco, as it's a great way to avoid driving and not worry about parking or drunk drivers on the road. Elimination of weekend service would eliminate our ridership, for sure.

You've got a trainload full of thirsty commuters and no coffee. Have Starbucks/Pete's/etc bid for the rights to sell coffee/drinks on the trains.

Maybe they should reconsider how cheaply they provide passes to local businesses, which then pass them on to employees. They cost much less than what the general public pays and probably represent a major portion of ridership. Don't cut service, equalize the cost for everyone.

It is good to know that Caltrain will not run on Weekends: I should find an apartment in San Francisco and commute to work as without a car I'd be stuck in Mountain View on weekends.

This is sad. We should really be providing MORE incentives to take public transit and reduce the number of cars on the road, not fewer! I take Caltrain to work whenever I can, even though it takes more time, costs more money, and is more inconvenient than driving. I do it because I care about the environment.

It is already ridiculous how much the caltrain costs. The fare should be at most half the price of gasoline for driving the same distance. This way, nobody would feel financially inclined to drive unless they could put another person in their car. It seems to me that a gasoline tax or similar should be applied to pay the difference.

I say just reduce midday service, is waiting another 30 minutes too much to ask for in the current economic environment?

Cut weekend service ... GREAT IDEA!!! Please start now!! As a matter of fact, I encourage CalTrain to only run during peak commute hours. For example, 6 - 9 am, and 5 - 8 pm, Monday - Friday. With fuel prices high, and the economy low, there is no reason for these large locomotives to run underutilized.

Please don't get me wrong, I commute on Caltrain, and take it to both SFO and SJC. I love the trains when they are full, and dread them running empty. Bus service from station to station, is adequate for the few weekend riders.

CalTrain, please act now. Cut weekend service, and save the money for electrification.

Re: Martin's post above, I see where you are coming from but let's look at the facts --

First, money for Caltrain electrification comes from a different pot than the money to run the service. Electrification is a capital project, and in the transit industry capital dollars can rarely be used to fund operating costs. For the politicians who make the budgets, cutting the ribbon on a costly capital project (like electrification) is 'sexy' but saying they helped keep some trains or buses running is not. So the argument that cutting weekend service would somehow save money for electrification is a red herring.

Second, take a look at the actual ridership figures... I was able to find them here (Web Link by Googling. The 2009 ridership report shows that average weekday ridership on the system is was about 39,100 boardings per day, while average Saturday ridership was about 10,400 and Sunday ridership was about 7,800. While those weekend figures are considerably lower, if you look at the train-by-train ridership (towards the end of the report) it shows that the average ridership per train is still in the 250 to 450 range (boardings) per train. That's a lot of people to try to squeeze on buses. I think you'll find the cost savings a lot less than you expect -- again, not saving the agency as much as claimed.

Guess what . . .

Both parties have made "taxes" a dirty word but, in fact, taxes are the way our socieity is funded.

We need to support our schools and infrastructure or we will fall way behind all other western nations. We need to raise taxes somewhat.