What are neighbors saying?

“It was a quiet street before the pandemic. There are plenty of other outdoor places nearby to walk and enjoy slowness. You are clogging up the other streets by keeping Lake closed.” -Chris

“I work at Little Sisters of the Poor. We frequently see families of our residents having trouble getting into our lot to visit because either they think the street is forbidden to cars or people sitting and playing in the middle of the street blocking access and most times being indignant or pushy saying the street is “closed”. It also affects us employees as well. Causing traffic all on adjacent streets and making it harder to get to work on time” -Jacob

“Streets should be shared and used primarily for transit we have plenty of open space for recreation like the Presidio just one block over.” -Matty

“The lock down is over. There is open space, beaches, playgrounds and a big park available these folks every day. Why should the people of California St have to absorb the traffic and emissions. Personally i always have used this street for 40 years to get to work and the beaches. I've enjoyed Lake but now it is reserved for an elite group.” -Cat

“My parents live between California and Lake and I go there often because they help watch my children. With the road changes on California, the Presidio closed, and Lake closed, it feels more hectic and less safe than ever. I grew up off Lake street and feel that these changes have been detrimental to traffic patterns and safety.” -Misti

“We end up taking longer routes, so it won’t help environment. No justification for taking almost 30 blocks away from people who need to drive for their daily necessities” -Kate

“The closure is creating gridlock, harming the environment and increasing commute times, the latter of which takes away time one could spend with family” -Herman

“I live on 7th Ave between Lake & CA. Crossing the 7th & CA intersection has become an ABSOLUTE nightmare! The CA St "traffic diet" coupled with the closing of Lake St has made that intersection infinitely less safe. I invite SFMTA & the Supervisors to come see for themselves. There is absolutely no valid reason to close Lake St - it runs parallel to Mtn Lake Park & it's minutes from car-less parks. All the traffic is simply pushed to other streets so it's actually worse for the environment. There has never been a problem walking or biking on the sidewalks on Lake St while cars are driving down the street. I've been doing it for decades!” -Terri

“I live one block from Lake Street and one block from Clay Street. I often drive a block or two on each when driving for work or for personal errands. There is literally no one walking in the street on Clay Street and very few on Lake Street. These streets, and others were closed to give locals the opportunity to exercise and socially distance during the pandemic. Eligible residents of San Francisco are now approximately 80% vaccinated and there is no need to close streets to vehicles. The slow streets are extremely divisive and under utilized. People are now driving motorized "bikes" or scooters on the slow streets. Meanwhile the traffic on adjacent streets, particularly California Street, is horrible during busy hours. As the City continues to reopen this situation will only become worse. Either make all streets in San Francisco slow streets and equally benefit all residents or eliminate the slow street program. This program pits neighbors against each other and those of us who are elderly or disabled depend on cars for our transportation. A bike is not an option for me and you are discriminating against those of us who are physically impaired and need to travel or work or personal purposes.” -Ridley