Paul Bignardi

Author Spotlight

Paul Bignardi was born in San Francisco and grew up in South San Francisco, San Bruno and Daly City.  He spent a lot of time in The City while growing up, including riding all types of Muni transit vehicles.  He graduated from S.F State University with BA degrees in Political Science and History, an MPA, and with a JD from UC-Hastings Law.  He has worked for over 24 years in Transit Planning at AC Transit, the National Park Service, and 14 years at the San Francisco Municipal Transportation Agency (SFMTA – current parent agency of Muni).  He has also worked for six years as a driver at Hornblower Classic Cable Cars (previously Classic Cable Car Charters).  He currently lives in San Mateo, CA.

Featured Work

A Fleet History of the San Francisco Municipal Railway

A Fleet History of the San Francisco Municipal Railway lists every transit vehicle used in regular service since Muni began operations in 1912.  The format includes a listing of key data for each vehicle: size, passenger capacity, manufacturer, cost, service years, a short summary of the service history of the vehicle and a photo (if available).  All four modes are covered: rail (streetcar / LRV), bus, trolley bus, and cable car; with one section covering each mode.  A summary history section precedes the fleet history sections. Two additional sections include information on all Muni operations facilities, and a figures and graphics section. The figures and graphics section summarizes material on the four modes of transit, and includes information on historical data in the areas of ridership, fares, farebox recovery, logo design and adoption, and agency structure and leadership.  A photo credits table is part of the bibliography. The book is the first compilation of this information in almost 40 years.  With over 200 pages of content, over 400 photographs, plus additional graphs and charts, this volume is an excellent reference and history resource both for experts and people with a casual interest in the history of the San Francisco Municipal Railway.

You can purchase your very own copy of A Fleet History at the Market Street Railway Museum near the S.F. Ferry Building in the Hotel Vitale post-COVID, and online on Amazon.

Featured Fun

Saturday, September 26, 2020 at 3:00PM – (Virtual) Ask an Author with Paul Bignardi

Join us for an informal, 30-minute “Ask an Author” Q&A session with Paul Bignardi, author of A Fleet History of the San Francisco Municipal Railway.

Paul Bignardi was born in San Francisco and grew up in South San Francisco, San Bruno and Daly City.  He spent a lot of time in The City while growing up, including riding all types of Muni transit vehicles.  He graduated from S.F State University with BA degrees in Political Science and History, an MPA, and with a JD from UC-Hastings Law.  He has worked for over 24 years in Transit Planning at AC Transit, the National Park Service, and 14 years at the San Francisco Municipal Transportation Agency (SFMTA – current parent agency of Muni).

This event is free but pre-registration is required.