A photo of a man with a cane sitting on the ground at a bus stop sparked a wave of compassion and a drive to improve public seating. This moment of discomfort gave rise to a local movement in Berkeley, California.
It began when Darrell Owens noticed his neighbor, recovering from surgery for chronic leg pain, forced to sit on the sidewalk while waiting for a bus. Owens, who had long complained about the lack of bus benches in Berkeley without any response from the city or AC Transit, took a photo of the scene and shared it on social media.
The post caught the attention of Mingwei Samuel, a local software engineer who had been building benches inspired by the Public Bench Project—a nonprofit that installs and donates benches to foster community-oriented public spaces. Samuel offered to move one of his benches to that bus stop.
Soon, Samuel’s bench was installed at the spot, and he shared a photo online showing the problem solved. His post quickly went viral, garnering over 100,000 likes and spreading goodwill throughout the community. This sparked the creation of a movement.
Owens and Samuel, who had been strangers just weeks before, teamed up to start the SFBA Bench Collective. They launched a simple website where people can join the cause, report bus stops lacking seating, or request benches. So far, the collective has installed around 77 benches at local bus stops, all compliant with AC Transit and Americans with Disabilities Act standards.
Each bench costs approximately $70, and the group focuses on placing them at the busiest stops. Their efforts have led to a playful rivalry with local transit authorities, who sometimes replace the collective’s benches with official city-installed ones. Owens sees this as a success, saying it means the city has taken responsibility for providing seating to its citizens.
The movement has gained momentum beyond Berkeley. A climate activist volunteer posted a video of a bench-building event that received 3.2 million views, inspiring similar initiatives nationwide. Social media continues to fuel the cause, with many groups advocating for better amenities to support public transit users.
Samuel noted that the energy to do good has grown since the last election, with more people organizing bench-building weekends. What started with a single bench in Berkeley has blossomed into a nationwide effort to make public transit more comfortable and accessible.