2024 40 Under 40: Sara Barz
July/August 2024
The magazine’s 16th iteration of its signature recognition program spotlights the individuals pushing the transit industry forward.
Seamless Transit
April 2015
How to make Bay Area public transit function like one rational, easy-to-use system.
Street changes could be coming to S.F.’s Inner Sunset. Neighbors are not happy
November 19, 2024
Sara Barz, a member of the SFCTA Community Advisory Committee, said the study is meant to help planners better understand transit problems facing the neighborhood.
Why S.F. bicyclists are divided over a new bikeway in the Mission District
July 28, 2023
Sara Barz, an organizer for KidSafe SF, a street safety grassroots group, said the new design has made it safer to bike on Valencia Street with her son because “there’s just far fewer conflict points” with cars.
Though she’s seen drivers enter the bikeway to make U-turns, Barz said the biking experience has changed noticeably. No longer does she encounter people constantly parked in the bike lanes, and the new configuration appears to have lowered car speeds on Valencia, she said.
“I feel more comfortable riding with my kid on the back of my bike than I did before,” Barz said. “It’s not perfect by any stretch, but, in my opinion, it’s an improvement.”
Pandemic ennui? S.F. still holds surprises to discover in its parks, streets and beaches
December 1, 2020
Sara Barz, a product manager for Apple, spent Friday and Saturday bicycling every Slow Street, clocking 66 miles.
“I’m a completist,” Barz said with a laugh. “When there’s a list of all the things to go through, I like to go through the list of all the things.”
The successful Slow Streets, she found, have neighbors walking, biking and playing on them to create a sense of vibrancy — and drivers who obey the signs rather than rudely blasting past them. Barz said her favorites were Lake Street in the Richmond, Page Street in the Haight, Kirkham Street in the Inner Sunset, and Mariposa Street in Potrero Hill.
S.F. Mayor Breed denied from making key appointments as officials give Daniel Lurie ‘a clean slate’
December 17, 2024
Supervisor Myrna Melgar tried and failed to get the board to continue the matter until January, after new supervisors are seated and [Daniel] Lurie is sworn into office as well. She said the delay would allow Lurie to decide if he wanted to move Breed’s nominations forward or withdraw them, while also “giving him a little bit of a heads up that these are really good nominations.”
Melgar hailed [Sara] Barz, a transit product manager at Apple, and [Joanna] Gubman, a former administrative law judge at the California Public Utilities Commission, as highly qualified candidates.
But Melgar was unable to persuade enough of her colleagues to keep the nominations alive.
Commentary: Sara Barz is a Great Pick for SFMTA Board
December 6, 2024
Mayor London Breed nominated Sara Barz to the SFMTA Board of Directors, a decision that should make anyone who cares about the future of San Francisco's streets sit up and pay attention. If confirmed, Barz will step into one of the most consequential roles shaping how San Franciscans get around—a role that directly influences everything from Muni reliability to street safety to bike lane expansion.
Barz’s professional background and community involvement make her a strong candidate for the SFMTA Board.