Google Bus Anger Grows As Lawsuit Alleges Tech Companies Are Violating State Law
Google buses are eluding state-mandated environmental analysis and are in violation of state law every time they stop to pick up tech employees at a public bus stop, according to a lawsuit filed last Thursday by a coalition of labor, housing and activist groups.
The groups are accusing the City of San Francisco of bypassing laws that forbid non-public transportation vehicles from using the stops in what has become a heated battle over gentrification – and the special privileges granted to technology companies – in the Bay Area.
The lawsuit, led largely by the Service Employees International Union Local 1021, was filed against Google, Apple, Genentech and other large Silicon Valley companies. It also lays blame on Mayor Ed Lee, the Board of Supervisors and the San Francisco Municipal Transportation Agency (MUNI), which are named as defendants.
San Francisco’s Matt Dorsey, a spokesman for the City Attorney’s Office, said late last week that he had not seen the complaint and therefore could not comment on the lawsuit.