Voters Will Determine Future of the Great Highway

Thousands of families on the Great Highway for a Halloween costume party

By Supervisor Joel Engardio

The future of the Great Highway is on the ballot this November. The section between Lincoln and Sloat has served as a part-time park with the road closed to traffic on weekends the past few years. Now, voters will determine if the city should plan for this section of the Great Highway to become a permanent oceanside park.

Why transform a section of the Great Highway into an oceanside park? I believe it will help the environment, boost local merchants, and bring people joy.

And cars will still be able to get where they need to go.

When discussing the Great Highway, it’s important to understand these points:

What’s already been decided?
What’s proposed for the future?
What’s staying the same?

This video explains the decisions we face at the Great Highway

What’s already been decided?
Both directions of the Great Highway south of Sloat are set to close due to coastal erosion — California’s Coastal Commission will not let the city rebuild this road at the expense of the beach. This has already been legislated. That means we will never again be able to use the Great Highway as a direct connection to Daly City. Traffic from Daly City will have to use Skyline and go around the zoo. Traffic from San Francisco will need to turn left at Sloat and continue south past Lake Merced.

What’s proposed for the future?
Without a direct connection to Daly City, we have to think about what is the best use of the section between Lincoln and Sloat. The ballot measure only proposes closing the section of the Great Highway between Lincoln and Sloat, which has never had any on/off ramps for cars to access the Sunset. This is an opportunity to reimagine this section as an oceanside park. This includes improving traffic flow on Lincoln and Sunset Boulevard to get people where they need to go.

What’s staying the same?
The ballot measure does not touch the section of the Great Highway that actually connects the Richmond and Sunset neighborhoods. Drivers will still be able to use the Great Highway to go around Golden Gate Park and reach the Sunset 24/7. The Great Highway from the Cliff House to Lincoln will remain open to cars 24/7. There will be full access for cars at Point Lobos, Cliff House, Balboa, Fulton, the Beach Chalet, the soccer fields, the Ocean Beach parking lot with 400 spaces, and Lincoln. Drivers will be able to get between the Sunset and Richmond just as they do now.

A big decision
The correspondence to my office is split on whether the Great Highway should be a park or not. This mirrors the results from Prop I — a November 2022 ballot measure that called for reopening the Great Highway to cars full time. In the Sunset, Prop I failed 53 to 47 percent. Citywide, it failed 65 to 35 percent.

The failure of Prop I meant the part-time park pilot could continue. The Great Highway would serve as a park on the weekend, then revert to a coastal highway during the week. But it’s a temporary arrangement set to end in 2025. As the deadline approaches, the fight between pro-highway and pro-park advocates will only intensify.

City Hall will be forced to answer what to do with the Great Highway if the question is not before voters.

The Board of Supervisors will likely legislate a closure in 2025, but after this November there is not an election until June 2026.

We’re asking a momentous question: Should a coastal highway remain what it was the past century or should it become something new for the next 100 years? A decision of this magnitude deserves to be made directly by voters.

Lemon-into-lemonade opportunity
In May 2024, the Board of Supervisors legislated the closure of the Great Highway south of Sloat. It was a unanimous decision. This closure had already been determined because of coastal erosion. The road is falling into the ocean.

The Great Highway south of Sloat is already scheduled for closure. All traffic will be forced to turn inland for points south.

The closure of the Great Highway south of Sloat is a reality we have to accept, even if we don’t like it.

But this inconvenience offers a lemon-into-lemonade opportunity.

I’ve been focusing my energy on finding a better way to travel south when it's no longer possible to use the Great Highway for direct connection to Skyline, Daly City, and Interstate 280.

One solution is to optimize a new route. When the section of Great Highway south of Sloat closes, southbound drivers will be forced to turn left at Sloat. But what if we made it easier to turn left at Lincoln instead? What if it was better to just head to Sunset Boulevard for points south?

Lincoln is a pain right now because it’s full of stop signs. The intersection at 41st is a real mess. But we can replace all those stop signs with traffic lights for much better traffic flow.

Road improvements on Sunset Boulevard are coming, like putting the bus stops on the other side of the intersection so cars can make easier right turns. And we can time the lights better.

A traffic light will replace the three-way stop sign at Sloat and Skyline that creates back-ups.

The section in red is already set to close due to coastal erosion. Drivers will be forced to turn inland for points south. The solution is to smooth the path for drivers down Lincoln and Sunset. By simply turning left on Lincoln instead of Sloat, we have the opportunity to create a coastal park.

These traffic improvements will benefit drivers by making it easier to get where they need to go. A seamless drive down Lincoln to Sunset Boulevard will also keep drivers from cutting through neighborhood streets.

If we can improve the driving experience along Lincoln and Sunset Boulevard, drivers will be able to get to the same point in a similar amount of time whether they turn left at Sloat or Lincoln.

The stretch from Lincoln to Sloat will have less utility as a direct connection to Daly City now that everything south of Sloat is closing no matter what. That’s the lemon we have.

Do we turn this section into an oceanside park by creating a new traffic route with better flow? That’s the lemonade we could make.

What are the travel patterns on the Great Highway?
The vast majority of drivers (64%) use the Great Highway to travel from the Richmond district to the peninsula, bypassing the Sunset district and the rest of San Francisco. But the road south of Sloat is already legislated to close due to extreme coastal erosion. With the greatest utility of the Great Highway gone, drivers will be forced to turn left at Sloat and detour inland to the peninsula.

Only 5% of drivers use the Great Highway as a connection between the Richmond and Sunset districts. The section that connects the two neighborhoods is not under consideration for closure. It will remain open to cars 24/7 because the road between Lincoln and the Richmond district is the only section that offers access to the Sunset district.

The section voters are considering for closure is between Lincoln and Sloat where there are no on/off ramps for cars and no direct access to the Sunset neighborhood.

The travel pattern details can be found in this report by the San Francisco County Transportation Authority on page 15.

What about traffic impacts?
A study by SFMTA reports that “side streets are not experiencing significant traffic changes resulting from Upper Great Highway as a promenade.” For example, weekday traffic on the Lower Great Highway is half of pre-pandemic levels.

The study determined there would be an additional travel time of 3 minutes to use Sunset Boulevard instead of the Great Highway between Lincoln and Sloat. This does not factor future traffic flow improvements such as replacing stop signs with signal lights on Lincoln and moving the bus stops on Sunset Boulevard to the other side of the intersection.

It’s important to note that Sunset Boulevard is already handling additional traffic when the Great Highway between Lincoln and Sloat is closed during the week from 30 to 65 days a year because of sand build up. Drivers already adjust on those days and that’s without any of the traffic flow improvements that are coming.

A study by the San Francisco County Transportation Authority (page 33) said closing the Great Highway between Lincoln and Sloat would result in vehicle speeds on Sunset Boulevard to drop one or two percent. The study noted: “Average speeds on Sunset Blvd exceed 20 MPH, so these changes may not be significantly noticeable to passengers.”

The CTA study (page 30) also noted that “the closure of Upper Great Highway is expected to add only between 100 and 200 vehicles to 19th Avenue, a small proportion of the vehicles already using the street in the peak period.”

We can get drivers where they need to go while also creating an iconic oceanside park that will benefit San Francisco for generations.

Can Lincoln and Sunset Blvd accommodate more cars?
SFMTA published a study in June 2024 detailing changes in traffic volume and travel times on the Upper and Lower Great Highway, Lincoln, and Sunset Boulevard since pre-pandemic peaks:

“The new normal for Upper Great Highway is average daily traffic that is approximately 38% lower than pre-Covid volumes, reflecting the broad commuting pattern changes with significant adoption of work from home.”
“Sunset Boulevard mid-week volumes are approximately 30% lower than pre-pandemic volumes.”
“Lincoln Way mid-week volumes are approximately 7% lower than pre-pandemic volumes.”
“Lower Great Highway has less than half the average weekday traffic volumes than prior to the pandemic.”
“The closure of Great Highway currently adds approximately three minutes of vehicular travel time at peak hour weekdays for trips that would typically use the Great Highway and are now diverted to eastern roadways, most likely Sunset.”
“Vehicle travel times are approximately a minute longer on Lower Great Highway and Lincoln Way on weekends versus weekdays during peak times.”

The SFMTA study also reports that “side streets are not experiencing significant traffic changes resulting from Upper Great Highway as a promenade.” For example, weekday traffic on the Lower Great Highway is half of pre-pandemic levels.

The study determined there would be an additional travel time of 3 minutes to use Sunset Boulevard instead of the Great Highway. This does not factor future traffic flow improvements such as replacing stop signs with signal lights on Lincoln and moving the bus stops on Sunset to the other side of the intersection.

It’s important to note that Sunset Boulevard is already handling additional traffic when the Great Highway between Lincoln and Sloat is closed during the week up to 65 days a year because of sand build up. Drivers already adjust on those days and that’s without any of the traffic flow improvements that are coming.

What will a successful park look like?
In the short term, the ballot measure will close the road between Lincoln and Sloat to allow for a full-time coastal park promenade. It will look like what it already does on the weekends when the road is closed to traffic. This is already a success with 9,400 people on average visiting each weekend, making the promenade San Francisco’s third most popular park. Data show that 4,000 people visit on Saturdays, 4,000 on Sundays, and 1,400 on Friday afternoons.

Long term, everyone has the opportunity to dream about the potential of a coastal park. The ballot measure purposefully doesn’t commit to any one vision for a park, which allows for more community input on what the park can eventually become.

This measure is the first step to let everyone have a say in whether this section of our precious coast should remain a road or be allowed to transform into a park.

What about funding?
If the ballot measure passes, there will be short term and long term funding. Initially, city departments would continue to fund park maintenance and sand clearing. The Recreation and Parks Department could install low-cost amenities, like benches for seating. Eventually, there would be a public process for park design and capital improvements. State and federal grants, a future park bond, and public-private partnerships like a park conservancy could provide funds. But we can’t begin that process until the voters decide how to use this space.

The city controller recently issued a memo that says the closure of the Great Highway from Lincoln to Sloat will save the city millions of dollars by reducing the need for sand removal and traffic-related capital improvements — namely the traffic signals that are past their life span. They are rusted out and need replacing.

These savings can be invested in creating the new park and paying for traffic flow improvements.

What happens if the measure fails or passes?
If the measure fails in November, the weekend pilot closure will continue through December 2025. Then the Board of Supervisors would take legislative action to decide what happens after the pilot closure ends. Or another ballot measure to determine the future of the Great Highway could be decided by voters in the elections of June or November 2026.

If the measure wins, the current weekend pilot will continue as-is. There will be a public process about the transition to a full-time park. It won't happen overnight. Status quo will remain to obtain necessary permits and implement traffic flow improvements. It will still require state Coastal Commission approval.

Economic benefits
The park could bring potential economic benefits to small businesses throughout the Sunset.

Two train lines (L-Taraval and N-Judah) offer a direct ride to the beach. Locals and tourists alike will become new neighborhood customers as they hop off the train for lunch, dinner, or drinks on their way to or from the park.

The opportunity for economic development in the Sunset is immense. Imagine the spillover effect of tourists visiting not only the oceanside park but the promised pandas at the nearby zoo. I believe we are on the cusp of a renaissance for small businesses in the Sunset.

Coastal protections
If the Great Highway becomes a park, the area would be protected by the state Coastal Commission. That means there will not be housing development on the Great Highway or the streets adjacent to it. The City Charter also protects parkland from being used for non-recreational purposes without a vote of the people — another safeguard against any housing development on the Great Highway.

The planning department is proposing new zoning heights throughout the city, but residential streets next to our coast, like the Lower Great Highway and 48th Avenue, are not under consideration for rezoning. The heights on those streets will remain at their current 40 feet, or four stories tall. There are only five intersections where commercial corridors meet the Lower Great Highway where heights are proposed to go above four stories, to 65 feet. The Board of Supervisors has also passed legislation that allows for two additional stories on corner lots only. Lastly, there’s a 1979 state law that allows three additional stories on our coast for 100 percent affordable housing projects. We will not see a wall of towers and we will not turn the outer Sunset into Miami Beach.

Will we lose an emergency evacuation route?
Social media posts have claimed the Great Highway is an emergency evacuation route, but this is not true. The director of San Francisco’s Department of Emergency Management issued the following statement:

“My colleagues at SFFD, SFPD, MTA, DPW, and I can advise you that San Francisco’s emergency plans are designed to be flexible, adaptable, and scalable to respond to any hazard that may impact our city. As maintaining this flexibility is essential to successful emergency response, the city does not pre-designate specific evacuation routes or thoroughfares. The Upper Great Highway is not a designated evacuation route and closing it to private vehicles will not change our existing emergency response protocols.”

A San Francisco County Transportation Authority study (page 14) notes that: “SFMTA has been in conversation with the San Francisco Fire Department (SFFD) to understand emergency access issues under potential closure scenarios. SFFD has stated that roadway configuration is not an access issue.”

A map with the title “Emergency Priority Routes” is currently being shared on social media as proof that the Great Highway is an emergency evacuation route. But the Department of Emergency Management issued a statement to explain why this is not true:

“This map displays roads the city may prioritize for debris removal following a major earthquake. This map is almost 20 years old and no longer relevant. It does not display emergency evacuation routes and should not be interpreted as such.”

Why isn’t a part-time park option on the ballot?
A part-time park/highway option is not sustainable. It’s difficult to create lasting park infrastructure when the weekend park has to convert back to a road every Monday morning.

An option to create a hybrid half park/half road between Lincoln and Sloat was studied during the decision to close the Great Highway south of Sloat. This option would create one lane of traffic in each direction, which would not offer the convenience drivers desire. It would also create hazards for the people crossing traffic to use the park.

The hybrid option was also prohibitively expensive because it would require massive infrastructure upgrades to current codes, including a physical separation between the two lanes of traffic.

Dedicating half of the area to a full-time park and the other half to a full-time road would cost the most while providing the least desirable experience for both drivers and park goers.

Read the study about the hybrid concept here (page 6 shows the concept illustration and page 37 has a cost analysis as the most expensive option).

A hybrid park/highway would still have all the expenses of maintaining the road for cars, even when the road has far less utility with everything already set to close south of Sloat. For example, the signal lights on the Great Highway between Lincoln and Sloat have reached the end of their lifespan. They are rusted out and need replacement — at a cost of nearly $5 million that could be used for something else.

Traffic management legislation
No matter what happens with the Great Highway ballot measure this November, I am drafting legislation that will address the traffic flow improvements we need in the Sunset. We will get traffic improvements whether the ballot measure wins or loses.

I’m drafting legislation to help expedite the planning, development, and contracting process for city agencies to implement west side priority traffic management projects. We need to make the city more responsive to westside transportation concerns, wants, and needs.

Many residents are frustrated and feeling that the city is failing to coordinate and adequately manage current traffic as they move across the westside.

Park or no park on a section of the Great Highway, I remain committed to improving the flow of traffic so our communities in the Sunset and Richmond remain connected to one another.

Read more about the legislation here.

How did this get on the ballot?
This November’s measure was put on the ballot with five supervisors along with support from Mayor Breed.

A measure can be put directly on the ballot with the signatures of at least four supervisors. As a single supervisor, I cannot unilaterally put a measure on the ballot or remove it.

Supervisors Matt Dorsey, Rafael Mandelman, Myrna Melgar, and Dean Preston joined me in putting this on the ballot. Supervisors Ahsha Safai and Hillary Ronen also support the ballot measure.

What is the political reality?
I’ve always talked about the pending closure of the Great Highway south of Sloat due to coastal erosion and how it would create the opportunity for a permanent oceanside park between Lincoln and Sloat. This language has been on my website and platform since my campaign in 2022.

While I agreed with many residents that the weekend compromise was good, a lot has changed in the past two years.

A ballot measure to reopen the Great Highway to cars 24/7 failed both citywide and in the Sunset. Supervisors voted 9-2 to reject removing Fridays from the weekend closure. Advocates wanting to open the Great Highway to cars failed multiple attempts to appeal the compromise, all the way up to the Coastal Commission. And the Board of Supervisors has already voted unanimously to protect the oceanside wastewater treatment plant from coastal erosion — a project that requires closing the Great Highway south of Sloat.

The Coastal Commission's response to denying the appeal signaled that they will support a permanent park. Read the Coastal Commission response here .

We must be honest about the political reality. All of these developments since 2022 have changed everything.

A majority of the Board of Supervisors currently supports closing the Great Highway between Lincoln and Sloat. And there will likely be a supermajority in January willing to legislate a closure in 2025.

There won't be another election until June 2026. By then, the Board of Supervisors will have likely closed a section of the Great Highway. That's why I believe we must let voters have a say this November.

A ballot measure lets residents who oppose a park organize against it. And it gives supporters a chance to make their case for why we need it.

Coastal Commission findings
Pro-highway advocates appealed the weekend park to the Coastal Commission in April 2024, seeking a return to a full time highway. The Coastal Commission unanimously denied the appeal.

The Coastal Commission findings dismissed the appellants' concerns point by point.

Read the full report here. Below are some highlights.

On public access: “The appeal contentions appear misplaced,” the report stated. “Regarding public access contentions, the project provides improved access along this section of the Upper Great Highway for pedestrians, bicyclists, and other non-vehicular users (e.g., persons in wheelchairs, families with baby strollers, etc.). The Great Highway system (i.e., both Upper and Lower Great Highways) would continue to accommodate all public access users along this stretch of coast with project implementation, and does not appear to run afoul of LCP or Coastal Act requirements to maximize public access in this regard.”

On dune stress: “The appeals are a bit tangential in this regard, and attempt to read more into the LCP’s requirements and the effect of this project on dunes than appear to actually be the case,” the report stated. “The appeals appear to try to connect the project to all of the current dune degradation problems associated with Ocean Beach without recognizing that the underlying causes for impacts to dunes date back decades, and are unrelated to this project in that regard.”

On increased vehicle pollution: “The appeals also raise a number of other contentions, such as asserting that greenhouse gas emissions (GHGs) and vehicle miles traveled (VMTs) would increase because of the project. However, there does not appear to be any evidence to support these claims (and, in fact, the aforementioned 2022 SFMTA traffic study suggests traffic has actually decreased).”

On density and development: “As to the contention that approval of this project will somehow lead San Francisco to approve increased density of residential and commercial development in the coastal zone, there appears to be no connection whatsoever between this project and any potential future density increases that might be considered, nor is increased density somehow forbidden by the LCP. Therefore, these neighborhood compatibility contentions also do not raise a substantial issue.”

Joys of a park
Personally, I’ve come to believe that transforming a section of the Great Highway into an iconic oceanside park is the right thing to do. Creating this space will help the environment, boost local merchants, and bring people joy. I also believe it’s a once-in-a-century opportunity to create a catalyst for a renaissance in the Sunset and San Francisco.

What to do with the section of the Great Highway between Lincoln and Sloat is a policy issue that reasonable people disagree on. Our coast is not owned by drivers, cyclists, or one neighborhood. It belongs to all San Franciscans. I believe voters should get to hear the facts and make their own decision. Every voter deserves to have their voice heard.

For residents who are opposed to the park or undecided, I invite you to imagine the benefits of transforming the section of the Great Highway between Lincoln and Sloat:

It’s good for the environment as we face coastal erosion and climate change.

Small businesses throughout the Sunset district will benefit. Two train lines offer a direct ride to the beach. Locals and tourists alike will become new neighborhood customers as they hop off the train for lunch, dinner, or drinks on their way to or from the park.

Generations of kids will learn how to ride a bike and play in a car-free space, seniors will have better access to the coast, and communities will have a gathering place to celebrate art, music, and culture.

It’s hard to ignore a chance to transform San Francisco. We can create an iconic oceanside park that will define our city, like the Golden Gate Bridge.

We could call it Ocean Beach Park or perhaps the Great Sunset Park.

We’ve already seen the potential with the weekend road closure. The part-time park has brought joy to more than three million visitors — from senior yoga to dragon dances, jazz performances to art exhibits, Halloween costumes on parade to marching bands in a Fourth of July parade.

The New York Times named the part-time park at the Great Highway as one of “52 places for a changed world.” Now we have the opportunity to make it full time and official.

We can give San Franciscans a real coastal park with all the things a park should have: Benches to watch ocean waves and sunsets, plazas for music concerts and holiday celebrations, places for friends and families to gather, and anything else we might imagine.

Fun aside, it’s good for the environment and just makes sense.

Remember when the Embarcadero was covered by a double-decker freeway? When Crissy Field was a dumping ground? San Francisco today is unthinkable without the park restoration at Crissy Field and the transformed Embarcadero waterfront.

A double decker freeway ran along the Embarcadero until 1989.

The Embarcadero today with an open waterfront and a forgotten freeway.

The decision to tear down the Embarcadero freeway was controversial 35 years ago, just as the decision about the Great Highway is today. I wonder, will the Great Highway for cars become as forgotten as the old Embarcadero freeway?

Will our kids and generations after them be able to imagine San Francisco without an oceanside park? Will we be the lucky ones who get to create this joyful place that will define San Francisco for the next century?

We get to decide this November.

Meanwhile, here are some faces of the people currently using the Great Highway as a park. They are the faces of pure joy.

This video describes how the Sunset can create an Emerald Necklace of green space for San Francisco.

Why joy matters
My job as a city supervisor has many facets. My priority is public safety and education. I work on serious issues like crime and homelessness. You can read about all the issues I work on here.

At the same time, we need to celebrate the joy that exists in San Francisco. That’s why I support fun activities like the Sunset Night Market. Fixing things in San Francisco requires multiple approaches. To do that hard work, we need hope. That’s why I also do everything I can to create more joy in our lives and show Sunset pride.

I’m happy to talk to any Sunset resident about any issue.

You can contact me here. I will see the messages directly.

Parks & Recreation, Politics, Innovation, Joy, EnvironmentJoel EngardioSeptember 6, 2024