Committee forwards Great Highway pilot to full Board after hours and deadline clarifications

The Land Use and Transportation Committee on Nov. 28 voted to forward to the full Board an ordinance establishing a pilot to restrict private vehicles on the Upper Great Highway between Lincoln Way and Sloat Boulevard on weekends, holidays and Friday afternoons through Dec. 31, 2025. The committee forwarded the ordinance without a committee recommendation after adopting clarifying amendments.

Supervisor Marr, the ordinance sponsor, said the measure would "authorize the current configuration to continue as a pilot through 2025" and that it includes requirements for comprehensive traffic management, ongoing data collection and a sand-management plan. Marr explained the legislation codifies a compromise that keeps weekday vehicle access while preserving Friday afternoons, weekends and holidays for a promenade.

Sarah Madeline of the Recreation and Parks Department described visitation and traffic data used to evaluate the pilot. She told the committee the departments rely on a combination of anonymized cellphone data and counters to analyze trends and that the promenade has recorded significant visits since the pandemic. Public Works superintendent Matt Naclerio urged more time to prepare the detailed sand-management plan in the ordinance, saying the January deadline in the draft would not be sufficient and asking that the date be extended to mid-March.

The meeting drew lengthy public comment from both sides. Supporters — including neighborhood groups, Walk SF, the San Francisco Bicycle Coalition and the Friends of Great Highway Park — urged the committee to preserve the promenade and recommended expanding Friday hours to start earlier (many urged 6 a.m.). Opponents, including petitioners and some nearby residents, warned the closure would push traffic onto neighborhood streets and urged that Friday vehicle access be retained.

After debate over timing and whether the incoming District 4 supervisor should be included in deliberations, the committee adopted the sponsor's clarifying amendments (including changing the phrase "afternoons" to specify a 12 p.m. Friday start) and agreed to the Public Works request to push the sand-management-plan deadline into March (the author requested March 15 to align with DPW's request). The committee then voted to forward the ordinance to the full Board without a committee recommendation; the clerk recorded Preston aye, Peskin aye and Melgar aye.

What happens next: the ordinance will be considered by the full Board, which will conduct first and second readings; if adopted the pilot will require Rec & Park and SFMTA to collect and publicly report data and return with a joint recommendation before the pilot expires.