Market Street

The argument for letting cars back on Market Street just went out the window. Instead, let's make the car ban real

Improvements to Market Street will finally segregate buses and cars from cyclists, creating a safer, more efficient street for all modes

Advocates give SFMTA Board an earful on allowing robocars on Market, but in reality the decision was made years ago

The SFMTA has completed its first wave of safety upgrades on Upper Market Street. The changes include painted sidewalk extensions (a.k.a. "safety zones"), high-visibility crosswalks, and signs prohibiting drivers from turning right at red lights.

At long last, private automobiles are prohibited from turning on to most of lower Market Street downtown. City officials implemented the change yesterday with a press conference in front of one of two large "safety zones" -- painted bulb-outs -- that were also completed as part of the "Safer Market Street" project.

The SF Hotel Council supports the SFMTA's proposals to extend transit-only lanes and ban private cars from mid-Market Street, said the council's chief.

The SFMTA announced that red paint will be added this weekend to the transit- and taxi-only lanes on mid-Market Street, between Fifth and 12th Streets. The treatment, already rolled out recently on bus lanes on Third Street and the Geary-O'Farrell Street couplet, is intended to make it more obvious that private auto drivers shouldn't be in the heavily-abused Muni lanes.

Doing the Wiggle should be a little easier, thanks to new green-backed sharrows and plastic posts installed by the SFMTA last week. These help bike commuters navigate the entrance to the Duboce bikeway, at Market and Buchanan Streets.

The SFMTA has proposed new forced turns for private autos at intersections on the most congested stretch of Market Street, which could be implemented in phases early next year. SFMTA staff presented the changes [PDF] to the agency's board of directors Friday -- not just as a way to speed up transit, but to make the thoroughfare safer for walking and biking.