Muni is on track to nearly double the cable car fare to $18 by 2028. But the real story isn't the price hike itself. It's the structural change buried underneath it: the city plans to eliminate single-ride cable car fares entirely, replacing them with a mandatory cable car + Muni day pass. No more hopping on for a quick ride up Powell Street. You'll be buying a full day pass whether you want one or not.

Now, in fairness, the day pass will cover one adult and two children and grant unlimited Muni rides for the day. As one SF resident put it, "It might raise the effective price for once-and-done tourists, but it's likely a net savings for most. It's been the recommended solution I've given to visitors for a long time."

That's a reasonable take — if you're actually planning to use Muni all day. But for the tourist who just wants the quintessential San Francisco photo op on a cable car before heading to Fisherman's Wharf? You just got forced into buying a transit pass you'll never fully use. It's a bundling play, plain and simple — the kind of thing we'd roast Comcast for.

And let's talk about the enforcement side of this equation. As any honest local will tell you, fare enforcement on Muni is, shall we say, aspirational. If the city can't consistently collect the fares it already charges, jacking up the sticker price is just performative budgeting. You're squeezing the people who actually pay while the free riders keep rolling.

Here's what this really is: the city has a revenue problem it created through years of bloated operating costs and deferred maintenance, and instead of finding efficiencies, it's taxing tourists. The cable cars are a civic treasure and a massive draw — one of the few things San Francisco markets that actually delivers on the promise. Making them less accessible and more confusing isn't a transit strategy. It's a cash grab dressed up as simplification.

If SFMTA wants to charge $18, fine — but earn it. Fix the enforcement gap. Streamline the bureaucracy. Stop treating visitors like ATMs and start treating the system like a business that has to justify its prices.

Otherwise, that $18 day pass is just an expensive souvenir.