Two-Way Lane Extension to Give Muni a Direct Route on Sansome Street

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Friday, July 15, 2016

A view of Sansome Street in the Financial District. The single southbound traffic lane is used by a Muni bus and taxi, while several lanes in the opposite direction are used by  cars, buses and a shuttle van.
Starting Saturday, Sansome Street’s southbound lane (seen here looking north at Pine Street) will be extended north to Broadway to improve Muni’s 10 and 12 routes.

A new southbound traffic lane on Sansome Street in the Financial District will provide a more direct path for Muni’s 10 Townsend and 12 Folsom/Pacific routes. Once buses start using the new lane on August 13, 2016 Muni customers will save up to three minutes on the southbound trip.

With the Sansome Street Improvement Project, part of Muni Forward, we will extend the street’s southbound lane three blocks north, from Washington Street to Broadway. Like the southbound lane segment that already exists on Sansome south of Washington, the extended lane will only be for transit and commercial vehicles during daytime hours.

Currently, this section of Sansome only allows one-way traffic in the northbound direction. So while northbound buses on the 10 and 12 run on Sansome all the way up to Pacific Avenue, southbound buses route an extra block out of the way (on Battery) for three blocks.

The southbound lane extension, which will be completed tomorrow, will eliminate that detour and move Muni buses on to a less congested street. That means a faster, simpler and more reliable trip for customers on the 10 and 12.

A map of changes to the 10 and 12 Muni routes shows a cancelled route segment for outbound (southbound) buses starting eastbound Broadway at Battery Sansome Street, south on Battery to Washington Sreet, and westbound Washington to Sansome. The new route turns directly from eastbound Broadway south on to Sansome.

It’s worth noting that this is one of the first Muni Forward infrastructure improvements to be funded by Proposition A, the transportation bond measure passed by San Francisco voters in 2014.

Construction finishes this Saturday, and Muni buses will start using the new route on August 13, 2016.

Sansome Street Changes

Starting Saturday, July 16, 2016

Traffic

One of the northbound traffic lanes on Sansome Street (west side) will be converted to a southbound lane between Broadway and Washington Street.

  • The traffic configuration and rules on this street section will be the same as those already in place on Sansome south of Washington. From 6 a.m. to 8 p.m. daily, the southbound lane will be restricted to buses, taxis, commercial vehicles and emergency vehicles. At all other hours, all vehicles will be allowed.

Parking

Fifteen metered parking spaces on the west side of Sansome will be converted to commercial loading zones.

Muni (Not Affected)

Muni routes will not be affected by the project until August 13 to allow time for Muni operator training and any adjustments.

Starting Saturday, August 13, 2016

Muni 10 and 12 Route Changes

Muni’s 10 Townsend and 12 Folsom/Pacific routes will be re-aligned to use the new southbound lane on Sansome.

  • Outbound 10 and 12 buses will no longer run southbound on Battery between Broadway and Washington. Instead, they will turn south on Sansome from Broadway.

Stop Closures for 10 and 12 Routes

The outbound 10 and 12 routes will no longer serve the following stops.

  • Broadway and Sansome Street (far side)
     
  • Battery Street and Broadway
     
  • Battery and Jackson streets
     
    • Note: The stops on Battery at Jackson and Broadway will continue to be served by the 82X Levi Plaza Express.

New Stops for 10 and 12 Routes

The outbound 10 and 12 will serve two new stops on southbound Sansome.

  • Broadway and Sansome Street (near side)
     
  • Sansome and Jackson streets