Pedestrians

Four girls between the ages of 9 and 14 were injured at South Van Ness Avenue and 24th Street in the Mission yesterday after the driver of a semi truck knocked down a traffic light pole, which fell onto the victims, according to police.

At the press conference yesterday to announce the plea deal between prosecutors and Chris Bucchere in the death of Sutchi Hui, SF District Attorney George Gascón said that his "goal is to send a message" to cyclists.

The Planning Department held a community workshop yesterday to field ideas on how to turn the numerous alleyways in and around Hayes Valley into calmer, greener, more inviting respites from the major traffic-heavy streets.

As if San Francisco's sidewalks weren't narrow enough, they're often cluttered with objects like newspaper racks, utility poles, street signs, and utility boxes.

Most of the space on the busy commercial stretch of central Irving Street in the Sunset serves as a clogged parking lot, with rampant double parking and drivers circling the easternmost block to work around 19th Avenue's left-turn bans. But while the car traffic and angled parking spots that eat up public space may not disappear any time soon, the Department of Public Works held a recent public meeting to field input on how to make the street more livable with new trees, re-paving, a median with greenery, and a few corner bulb-outs.

Members of the SF Police Commission, a civilian body charged with police oversight, urged SFPD officials at a hearing last week to focus their traffic enforcement efforts on the greatest danger facing people walking: driver violations.

The final designs for a people-friendly block of Bartlett Street in the Mission were presented [PDF] last week by the Planning Department, Department of Public Works, the SFMTA, and the design firm Rebar. The plan retains the sidewalk extensions that are key to calming traffic and inviting social activity outside of events like the weekly Mission Community Market, when the block is closed to cars.

Update: It seems there's no way to edit the map directly via the link because Google's Maps Engine Lite, which is still in beta, may have some issues to be worked out. So to add your marker to the map, you can either email me at abialick@streetsblog.org and I'll add it for you, or you can add it yourself (if you have a Google account) by first clicking here, then here. The map should open with some editing tools at the top. Click the marker icon labeled "Add marker," next to the hand icon, and place your sighting.

Two blocks of Jefferson Street in Fisherman's Wharf have been revamped to prioritize walking and biking after the project was expedited with support from political leaders.