San Francisco's Market St goes car-free

Private cars have been banished from one of San Francisco’s premier corridors. Market Street is a major thoroughfare for the city, as well as a popular gathering place for locals and tourists alike. 

"It is the everyday backbone of the city, with hundreds of thousands of people traveling along it on foot, bike, bus or streetcar. It's where we gather to celebrate our victories and protest injustices,” mayor London Breed said in a blog post.

Many took to social media to celebrate the milestone. Photo: Jean-Paul Torres / Twitter: @jpnv

Now as part of the $900 million Better Market Street project a three and a half kilometre section of the road’s been declared car free, joining a wave of international cities putting pedestrians first.

"The Market Street project helps us meet two key goals: moving more people by eliminating congestion delay on our most important transit corridor, and improving safety on the street with five of our top-ten, high-injury intersections," says Jeffrey Tumlin, San Francisco’s Municipal Transportation Agency’s (SFMTA) director of transportation.

While private cars have been banned, city-regulated taxis, commercial vehicles, emergency vehicles and public transport are still allowed. Photo: Elizabeth Creely / Twitter:@ElizabethCreely

The agency says the project revitalises Market Street from Octavia Boulevard to The Embarcadero. In that same section, since 2014, there have been an average of more than 100 injury crashes per year, 75 percent involving people walking or biking.

When the street was built in 1847 there were just over 50,000 people living in the city. Today there are more than 800,000.

While some elements of the redesign will take time others are part of the SFMTA’s quick build programme, which accelerates the implementation of safety improvements. That’s things like painted safety zones, bike lanes, adjustments to parking regulations and changes to the configuration of traffic lanes. 

Quick-build projects do not involve large capital construction elements since those involve much longer design, higher cost contracting, and construction phases.  

Advocates have been campaigning for the move for decades. Photo: Jean-Paul Torres / Twitter: @jpnv

London Breed says: “We want these safety, environmental, and transit benefits throughout the city - not just on Market Street - and we will continue to pursue other opportunities to create people-first spaces. 

“We are actively planning for a future in which our public spaces are reclaimed for people and where streets and sidewalks are convenient, enjoyable, and safe places to travel and gather.”