Photo by SFMTA Photography Department
During the Transportation Authority Board meeting this month, board members approved the Octavia Improvements Study Final Report, which recommends a set of local safety and connectivity improvements and regional congestion management strategies.
The Octavia Improvements Study was requested by former District 5 Transportation Authority Board Member Vallie Brown to improve safety, accessibility, and circulation along Octavia Boulevard and the surrounding neighborhoods. Octavia Boulevard serves as a major connection between several neighborhoods and the Central Freeway/U.S 101. During peak hours, there is significant traffic congestion on Octavia and streets leading to/from that cause queuing and conflicts in the area.
Through technical analysis and community outreach, the study recommends:
Local safety and connectivity improvements
Some of the recommended concepts can be designed or delivered as part of related projects led by SFMTA.
Bulbouts on Oak and Fell streets at Buchanan and Webster streets to improve pedestrian safety and visibility.
Red light camera enforcement (or a similar strategy to reduce red light running and associated conflicts) on Market Street at Gough Street to improve safety and
Traffic calming on Octavia Street, such as raised crosswalks, signal timing adjustments, and/or speed humps.
Regional congestion management strategies
The following regional strategies are recommended to advance to the next stage of planning and technical analysis.
Transit and High Occupancy Vehicle Lane on Oak Street
This concept recommends studying and conducting outreach to develop High Occupancy Vehicle and transit lanes on Oak Street. This HOV / transit lane would connect the existing and planned managed lane and freeway network on U.S. 101. This recommended next phase of planning work should include further technical analysis and outreach regarding retiming the Oak Street signals to meter traffic along Oak, upstream of the Oak and Octavia intersection.
Regional Express Transit Hub
This concept recommends planning for regional and local express transit service to connect San Francisco with Peninsula cities, and study establishing a regional transit hub in the Civic Center area to enable closer connections from western neighborhoods to regional transit service.
Read the full final report report, pages 5-49 or view the slide deck (PDF)
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