Topic: Earthquake Safety

BART officials announced that train service will start an hour later next year to allow for earthquake retrofitting of the underwater Transbay Tube. Critics question why the tube, which is relatively modern, was not made earthquake-safe during its original construction. The project is characterized as a potential "boondoggle" or a sign of significant structural disaster that BART planners are only now addressing.

The Great Southeast Shakeout earthquake drill took place across California on October 18, 2012, involving millions of participants from schools and corporations like Walmart and Bank of America. The safety procedure "drop, cover, and hold on" is compared to the 1951 "Duck and Cover" civil defense film featuring Bert the Turtle. Skepticism is expressed regarding the effectiveness of these drills during major seismic events.

San Francisco traffic patterns show unusual congestion entering the city during evening commute hours. Discussion focuses on the construction of the Millennium Tower, referred to as the Tower of Death, which is the tallest residential building west of the Mississippi River. Concerns are raised regarding the building's proximity to the San Francisco-Oakland Bay Bridge and its potential for catastrophic failure during an earthquake, despite a water-filled honeycomb grid structure designed to counterbalance swaying.