Sunset Neighborways - Project Update - April 2022
Thank you for your continued interest in the Sunset Neighborways project.
Over the course of the last few months, the project team has been engaged in a community outreach process to introduce the project to the Sunset neighborhood and to gather initial feedback on the proposal. The project team launched an initial outreach survey that spanned from the end of November 2021 to the end of January 2022. Additionally, the project team reached out to several community groups and neighborhood organizations and attended community-hosted meetings to talk more about the project and gather feedback. Check out the presentation that was given by the project team at community-hosted meetings during the initial outreach period.
Here are some of the key themes from the feedback we heard over the four-month initial outreach period:
- Driver speeding and not fully stopping at Stop Signs or not enough Stop Signs (i.e., 2-way stop vs. 4-way stop intersections) were recurring traffic safety concerns in the feedback
- For each of the proposed Neighborways, general traffic safety and pedestrian safety were the highest-ranked aspects, with more than 50% of respondents indicating them as priorities for successful Neighborways
- Speed humps and raised crosswalks were the most favored tools from the Neighborways traffic safety design tool kit from respondents in the initial outreach survey
- Intersection daylighting was commonly heard as a supported traffic safety measure from residents and community members at community-hosted meetings
- Respondents commonly confused Neighborways and the Slow Streets program with concerns about continued partial street closures and corridor-wide traffic diversion with the Sunset Neighborways project
- Generally, traffic calming is desired, especially near schools; most respondents indicated favoring at least one of the treatments from the Neighborways tool kit
- Street closures and traffic diversion are not favored by some residents due to perceived impacts of increased congestion on adjacent streets, or perceptions of reduced vehicle access
Next Steps
The eight proposed Neighborway streets will move forward into the project’s design phase. Below is a map showcasing the eight corridors continuing in the project:
The corridors continuing in the project include:
- 28th Avenue between Lincoln Way to Vicente Street
- 34th Avenue between Lincoln Way to Vicente Street
- 41st Avenue between Lincoln Way to Vicente Street
- 47th Avenue between Lincoln Way to Vicente Street
- Kirkham Street between 19th Avenue to La Playa Street
- Ortega Street between 47th Avenue to 18th Avenue
- Rivera Street between 48th Avenue to 19th Avenue
- Vicente Street between 46th Avenue to 19th Avenue
Over the next couple of months, the project team will proceed into the design phase and determine the path forward for each of the proposed Neighborways streets. If warranted, design alternatives will be developed for each of the eight proposed Neighborway streets. If the proposed streets have been determined to be safe or “low-stress” in their current form, no further traffic calming design will be proposed, and the street will simply be signed as a Neighborway to indicate that it is a priority pedestrian and bicycle street in the neighborhood.
The team is planning a second community outreach phase in Summer 2022, and during this time the team will showcase the eight proposed Neighborways, potential design alternatives, and collect more feedback from the neighborhood on each of the proposed Neighborways.
No official decisions have been made in terms of Neighborways implementation. The project's public hearing, official decisions, and approvals are tentatively planned for Fall 2022. More information about the approvals phase of the project will be shared as we continue to progress the project forward.
Neighborways and Slow Streets
Part of the Sunset Neighborways proposal is to remove the existing Slow Streets in the Sunset Neighborhood (41st Avenue, Kirkham Street, and Ortega Street) and convert them into Neighborways. 20th Avenue, which was originally a Neighborway, but designated as a Slow Street in Summer 2020, will also be converted back to a Neighborway.
During the initial outreach phase for this project, there were a lot of comments confusing or associating Neighborways with Slow Streets, and the belief that the implementation of Neighborways would result in the continuance of partial street closures or making the existing Slow Streets permanent. Neighborways and Slow Streets are two different types of priority pedestrian and bicycle streets. Unlike Slow Streets, Neighborways do not impose a non-local access vehicle restriction and they are not partial street closures. Neighborways also do not create walkways or recreation spaces for pedestrians in the roadway.
Neighborways simply create a priority pedestrian and bicycle route by focusing on traffic calming design aimed to improve traffic safety and comfort for people walking and bicycling. If a street designated as a Neighborway is already “low-stress” and safe in its existing form, no other traffic calming design treatments will be included, except for signage to indicate that it is a Neighborway.
Additional Materials on Neighborways and the Sunset Neighborways Project:
Neighborways versus Slow Streets - Project Factsheet
Initial Outreach Presentation on the Sunset Neighborways project
For more information on the project, please visit SFMTA.com/SunsetNeighborways.