Park Presidio Blvd./19th Avenue Upgrade Coming

By Alastair Bland

The San Francisco County Transportation Authority (SFCTA) and Caltrans plan to begin a major upgrade and retrofit of 19th Avenue and Park Presidio Boulevard (also known as California Highway 1) in the fall of 2006.

The project will affect each of the 34 intersections along the major thoroughfare, from Lake Street to Junipero Serra Boulevard. Traffic signals will be replaced, pedestrian crossings improved for safety and convenience, and bus shelters rebuilt and modified.

The project has been divided into three phases, reported Ian Moore, project manager with SFCTA.

"Phase 1 is supposed to begin this fall," Moore said, though a commencement date has not yet been set.

Phase 1 will address the shortcomings of the 10 highest-use intersections along 19th Avenue, including the crossings at Junipero Serra Boulevard, Taraval Street, Irving Street and Lincoln Way.

"The current traffic signals were installed in the 1940s. They're very antiquated, and some of the traffic accidents on 19th Avenue and Park Presidio have been a result of motorists not being able to see the signals or not even looking for them," Moore said.

To improve visibility of the traffic lights, Caltrans will oversee the installation of new light posts, with mast arms that suspend the signals out over the roadway. Visibility will increase dramatically, though Moore said some citizens have expressed concern that the enhancements will give the roadway the look of a freeway.

The project also includes plans to install signal countdowns for pedestrians, upgrade curb ramps to Americans with Disabilities Act standards, and repaint crosswalk boundary lines.

Moore said the longer-than-usual street upgrade times were due to the limited hours during which work could take place; much of the labor and construction will occur during night-time hours.

Phase 1 is expected to take approximately one year to complete.

Phase 2 will begin in early 2008 and last until 2010, focusing on 19 intersections.

If sufficient funding is appropriated, phase 3 will follow to make improvements at the remaining five intersections.

"This is such a major roadway that contractors can't just shut down the street," Moore said. "About 85,000 vehicles go through here daily."

Pedestrian safety - and not smooth traffic flow - is the driving force behind the project. From 1999 through 2004, 32 pedestrians were struck by vehicles along the 7.5-mile stretch between Lake Street and Junipero Serra. Fourteen of these resulted in fatalities, and Moore said the SFCTA would like to finish the project as soon as possible in its effort to reduce pedestrian casualties.

"We want to see expanded construction hours to get this finished sooner, but Caltrans takes a very conservative approach to traffic impact, said Moore. "I think people in general are not willing to accept a significant impact on traffic."

So far, $20 million has been allocated toward the retrofit of the roadway. Half of the money will come from the city and county, and half will be supplied by the state. Moore said the funds will cover all the needs of phases 1 and 2.

Phase 3, however, is only a tentative plan. It requires approximately $2.5 million extra - or $500,000 per intersection - which will be secured after Phase 2 is completed. Installation of a proposed bus detection and announcement system will also have to wait until after Phase 2.

Moore explained that the GPS and microwave technology involved will depend upon the new and reliable, state-of-the-art traffic signal system.

Proposition K, a county tax collection measure passed in 2004, will provide the needed money for the improvements along the 28, 28L, 28X, and 91 Owl bus lines.

"We currently have one million dollars available for the bus improvements, but we definitely need more," said Moore.

Much of 19th Avenue will also see an aesthetic enhancement in the coming years. The San Francisco Department of Public Works (DPW) is organizing a landscaping improvement effort from Lincoln Way to Sloat Boulevard, and possibly as far south as Junipero Serra Boulevard.

"Park Presidio is already pretty well forested on both sides," said Kris Oproek, project manager for the landscaping plan, "but 19th Avenue is a pretty barren street and it has lots of traffic. Some minor landscaping will really improve the pedestrian experience."

Oproek said DPW would like to plant trees along the median divide as a traffic calming measure.

"Generally, the farther ahead you can see, the faster you tend to drive. The trees would cut the view a little and slow down the cars."

Caltrans regulations, however, prohibit trees in such proximity to a state highway because it considers them a hazard. A long row of shrubs, said Oproek, is the only possible alternative, but several of the larger commercial intersections along 19th Avenue will see some tree-plantings on the sidewalks and street corners.

Oproek said that residents have few objections to such landscape-enhancement measures. The only issues that have been raised have to do with tree maintenance and the blockage of window views. These matters and more will be open for discussion at a series of public meetings in September. While there is time for debate and modifications to the plan, said Moore, there is no time for further delays.

"Caltrans might pull the state funding if we hesitate," he said.

Members of the public who wish to be notified of the upcoming public meetings can contact Moore at (415) 522-4808 to be put on the notification list.