The demonstrators are upset that tech companies are using city bus stops "without permission", driving up rent costs along those routes, not contributing funds to support public infrastructure, and causing the evictions of San Francisco residents who can no longer afford rent.
A flyer handed out when the group of protestors stopped a Google bus earlier in December read as follows:
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STOP THE EVICTIONS NOW!
Today we are the SAN FRANCISCO DISPLACEMENT AND NEIGHBORHOOD IMPACT AGENCY, and we're stopping the injustice in the city's two-tier system where the public pays whille private corporations gain.
Rents and evictions are on the rise. Tech-fuled real estate speculation is the culprit. We say: Enough in Enough! The keys to shape the city to their fancy without the public having any say in it. We say, lets take them back!
Tech Industry private shuttles use over 200 SF MUNI stops approximately 7,100 times in total each day (M-F) without permission or contributing funds to support this public infrastructure. No vehicles other than MUNI are allowed to use these stops. If the tech industry was forced to pay for every illegal use of these stops for the past 2 years, they would owe an estimated $1 billion.
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Joe Fitz Rodriguez, reported on the incident via Twitter saying:
BREAKING: San Francisco protesters commandeer another tech bus, this time from Apple.
Later, as they let the bus go:
Protesters shout "shame" as #techbus heads off to apple HQ in Cupertino.
Take a look at a few photos below...
