San Francisco approves safety upgrades near hospitals, schools, parks

Children walking to school, seniors heading to neighborhood parks, and people with disabilities trying to cross busy District 2 streets are the focus of San Francisco’s new safety plan, but the most urgent fixes still split into two tracks: a funded batch of quick-build improvements and a longer-term redesign that remains unfunded.

The San Francisco County Transportation Authority approved the final District 2 Safety Study, a report requested by former District 2 board member Catherine Stefani and financed through Neighborhood Program Prop K sales tax funds. The study covers the Marina, Pacific Heights, Anza Vista, Presidio Heights and Cathedral Hill, with community outreach pointing to the same patterns across those neighborhoods: speeding, distracted driving and weak pedestrian protections.

The strongest near-term fixes are concentrated at the places residents use every day. The report calls for an activated blank-out “No Right Turn” sign at Bay Street and Laguna Street, traffic calming near Lafayette Park, speed humps or cushions on six residential streets in Anza Vista, lead pedestrian intervals and “No Turn on Red” signs at Masonic Avenue and Geary Boulevard, secure bike parking near major attractors in Presidio Heights, and painted safety zones at up to five intersections in Cathedral Hill. It also calls for better bike wayfinding, pavement markings, color curb changes and pedestrian visibility improvements across the district.

Those measures carry a planning-level cost estimate of $430,000 and are intended to use Neighborhood Program funds that were already set aside and held in reserve. The more expensive Bay Street and Laguna Street redesign, which would also improve bike lane connections to Fort Mason Park, is estimated at $200,000 to $250,000 and still needs a funding path before it can move forward.

The study took shape in March 2023, when the board allocated District 2 Neighborhood Program funds for the work and set aside implementation money for later. Outreach began in 2024 with a June 13 town hall and a survey open through June 30 in English, Spanish and Chinese, then continued with a second round in spring 2025. The study team said residents repeatedly raised the same concerns: speeding, distracted driving and a lack of traffic enforcement.

The Transportation Authority Board approved the report on March 10, 2026, then gave final approval on March 24. A Community Advisory Committee motion backing adoption passed unanimously on February 26. Detailed design is expected to begin in late 2026, with construction in 2027, while Transportation Authority staff work with Sherrill’s office, SFMTA and other city agencies to find money for the longer-term projects that remain on the shelf.