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Valencia Street is one of San Francisco's highest utilized bike routes with 2100 cyclists riding along it on an average weekday. With parts of Valencia on the city’s High-Injury Network, we had a series of workshops in July to address safety and improve infrastructure along this corridor.

Since the workshops, the project team received a lot of insightful feedback regarding the bikeway design alternatives and the near-term curb management (i.e., parking and loading) improvements from the community. This blog post provides a glimpse of what’s to come for the project over the next few months.

Bikeway Update: Market to 15th streets

Per the directives and partnership of Mayor London Breed, parking-protected bike lanes will be piloted on Valencia from Market to 15th streets in early 2019. In tandem with the bikeway upgrade, curb management changes will also be implemented on this stretch of the corridor. The project team will be conducting door-to-door outreach with merchants and following-up with stakeholders in the upcoming weeks. At this time, the parking-protected bikeway pilot is anticipated to be heard at the SFMTA Board of Directors meeting on December 4, 2018. Following that, city crews would begin constructing the parking-protected bike lanes, using temporary, low-cost materials as much as possible. Following the implementation, the project team will evaluate the design to help inform the longer-term, corridor-wide project. Additional outreach and community conversations will be held in spring and summer 2019 to determine a preferred bikeway design alternative(s) for the entire corridor.

Curb Management Update: 15th to 24th streets

In the upcoming weeks, the project team will also be conducting another round of merchant door-to-door outreach to get feedback on impacts of potential color curb changes on Valencia Street from 15th to 24th streets. Most curb management improvements in this portion of Valencia include consolidating loading (passenger and commercial) zones and implementing more passenger loading zones that will be in effect past 6 p.m. The project team plans to share these proposals with the community later this fall. Please be on the lookout for another update in a few weeks detailing the next community event.

Thanks for your interest and involvement in the Valencia Bikeway Improvements project. To stay in the loop about the project and upcoming events, please sign up for project updates.

The Polk Streetscape Project is near completion! As we work with San Francisco Public Works to finalize everything, here’s what you need to know about the new bike lanes, streetscape amenities, parking and loading as crews put the finishing touches on this two-year construction project.

What’s Next?

Polk Street, north of Jackson Street has been paved and striped. Over the next month, crews will be paving Polk Street from Bush to McAllister streets, with final roadway striping happening in November and December. Parking and loading changes will occur with the new striping, including the removal of all parking on the east side of Polk Street between Pine and McAllister streets and some removal of general metered parking on the west side of Polk Street with improved commercial and passenger loading spaces to better accommodate the area’s demand.

Since August 2012, the SFMTA worked with the community on a two-year comprehensive outreach process to better understand needs and concerns from residents, merchants and community groups. This outreach included:

• More than 50 focused meetings with community groups and stakeholders
• Five widely-advertised and well-attended public meetings
• Six walking tours with SFMTA staff

The final project combines the ideas from the community with a clear understanding of where and why collisions are happening on Polk and the improvements needed to prevent them. This project was approved by the SFMTA Board of Directors in March 2015 and project construction began in fall 2016.

This project will also unveil a new bikeway design for the corridor. At the intersections of Geary, Ellis, Eddy and Turk, in the southbound direction, the bike lane will be signal separated from southbound vehicles right turns to improve safety for users. On the west side, parking and loading changes are being implemented to meet the specific needs of the neighboring businesses as determined in the SFMTA’s extensive outreach process. Parking on the east side will be removed between McAllister and Pine streets to accommodate a new bike lane adjacent to the curb and separated from traffic.

The project also includes a suite of pedestrian and transit improvements including bulb-outs and pedestrian lighting as well as new sidewalk trees. With the project, Fern and Austin alleys will also be receiving upgrades, with pedestrian enhancements including raised crosswalks, improved lighting and trees, and space for residents, shoppers and people passing by to enjoy.

The final illustrative plan for Polk Street is available here. The project is anticipated to be completed in December 2018. For updates, visit the San Francisco Public Works webpage.

Photo courtesy of Epiphany Dance photographer Andy Mogg.

San Francisco Trolley Dances

Saturday - Sunday 11 a.m. - 4 p.m.
4th & Channel Streets at Mission Creek Park

San Francisco Trolley Dances, now in its 15th anniversary season, is a two-day, free (with Muni fare) public performance curated by the Epiphany Dance Theater. Artists and dance ensembles are paired with specific sites along San Francisco’s Muni route, where they are invited to create an 8- to 15-minute dance piece in response to the physical environment, architecture and history of the area. This year’s route takes you from Mission Bay to SoMa. This admission-free festival has been dubbed “Art for citizens” and “A gift to the City” by past attendees, and a record of 5,000 people have joined us for a weekend of art and community. Line up for wristbands begins at 10 am. Show up early as they often have given out all of the wristbands hours in advance. Wristbands are given out on a first come, first serve basis.

How to Get There on Muni: Riders may take N Judah or the KT Ingleside.

Muni Service Notes: There are no planned service changes for this event, however, routes in the area may see minor delays or increased ridership near Mission Bay.

Potrero Hill Festival

Saturday, 11 a.m. to 4 p.m.
Potrero Hill

The Potrero Hill neighborhood will be hosting its 28th annual eponymous festival this Saturday on 20th Street between Missouri and Wisconsin streets. The Potrero Hill Festival celebrates the community with live music, food, drink and wares from local vendors, local historians, games and much more. There is something for the whole family to enjoy this weekend, so don't miss the opportunity to check out this iconic part of San Francisco.

How to Get There on Muni: Riders may take the 10 Townsend, 19 Polk or 22 Fillmore to near the event.

Muni Service Notes: The 10 will have a reroute for this event. The 19 and 22 may see minor delays or increased ridership in the area of the event.

Wharf Fest

Saturday, 11 a.m. to 5 p.m.
Fisherman's Wharf

Returning to Fisherman's Wharf for the sixth consecutive year, Wharf Fest showcases the historic wharf after the crowds of visitors have dissipated with a street fair atmosphere featuring over 50 booths of vendors, free activities, food and drink. The highlight of the event is surely the Clam Chowder Competition and Tastings, as Fisherman's Wharf restaurants battle it out to see whose clam chowder reigns supreme. Wharf Fest is a free event open to the public, however, tickets are required for the Clam Chowder Competition.

How to Get There on Muni: Riders may take the E Embarcadero or F Market and Wharves streetcar lines, as well as the 8 Bayshore, 19 Polk, 28 19th Avenue, 30 Stockton, 39 Coit, 47 Van Ness or the 49 Van Ness/Mission routes to near the event.

Muni Service Notes: There are no planned service changes for this event, however, routes in the area may see minor delays or increased ridership near the Wharf.

Remember that you can Muni the entire day for a single $5 fare. The new $5 Day Pass, available on MuniMobile®, is part of Muni’s recent fare changes. The pass is intended to encourage a safe, convenient way to pay your fare and quickly board Muni vehicles, which reduces overall travel time for everyone. The $5 Day Pass is Muni bus, rail and historic streetcars only. 

“On Tap” gives you a heads up about the big events in town and what Muni routes and lines will get you to the party. Look for this feature to be posted usually on Thursdays for a look ahead to the weekend. Check out our Weekend Traffic & Transit Advisory for more details.