Makeover on Market Street Meeting Resistance from Merchants

Market Street is one of the central arteries of San Francisco, and has been featured in novels, movies, short stories, articles and paintings. It’s famous, beloved and cursed. However, SF planners are seriously going down the road of outlawing noncommercial traffic on this road. Yes, a ban on cars and personal trucks is on the move for sections of Market Street – making this vehicle rich street more a mecca for pedestrians and bike riders.

However, the merchants of Market are balking at the new plan, pointing out that their unloading of goods would be make more difficult without street access.

Jim Lazarus, public policy senior vice president at the SF Chamber of Commerce, told the Examiner ““Some [businesses] don’t have any real access except on Market Street. You’re always worried until you see the final product.”

The plan was debuted back in August, though it’s been in the works for 8 years, and will cost $604 million. It would affect Lyft and Uber cars on certain stretches of Market and private vehicles would be banned on longer reaches of the street, making way for more bike lanes and expanding sidewalks.