ABOUT US

Reinventing San Francisco one street at a time.

The Friends of Slow Sanchez is a group of Noe Valley neighbors and merchants who have banded together to promote community, safety, health, and art along the Sanchez slow street corridor. The group originally formed in June 2020 to address intersection safety but is now focused on a series of community-funded projects that benefit the neighborhood.

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FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS

What is a slow street?

Slow Streets are shared spaces between people on foot or bike and cars on residential streets. A street receiving the Slow Street designation restricts street access to only local traffic, emergency vehicles, and mail/delivery vehicles. Signage is also installed to discourage unsafe speeds and warn motorists of the possible presence of people walking, running, or biking in the roadway.

Slow Streets provide an alternative mode of transportation by making walking and biking safer and more comfortable. Additionally, by making the roadway a shared space people are able to better socially distance while using the street for essential travel.

Can a commercial street be a Slow Street?

Slow Streets treatment is only appropriate for low-volume residential streets. However, the Shared Spaces program uses similar elements to create space for outdoor dining and street closures in commercial districts.

What would making these changes permanent entail?

Permanent designation of a Slow Street entails restricting access to Sanchez Street to only local traffic, emergency vehicles, and mail/delivery vehicles. Current temporary treatments like the Type III barricades would be swapped out with semi-permanent infrastructure like traffic diverters or safe-hit posts creating narrower entryways on the street to discourage through traffic. More Slow Street type signage would also be installed to emphasize the Slow Street designation on Sanchez Street and encourage safer speeds from vehicles due to the possible presence of pedestrians and bicyclists using the roadway.

Local traffic is defined as vehicles that have an origin or destination on the street (i.e. residents of the street or visitors of those residents). Through traffic is defined as vehicles passing through the street to reach a destination elsewhere.

Do people support the Slow Street Program in general?

Yes. >75% of >6,000 questionnaire respondents support the program.

How will traffic be impacted?

Car volumes on the slow street corridors have declined >50%. While there may be additional cars diverted to neighboring streets, MTA's evaluation estimates these effects to be not signifcant.

What about pedestrian and bicyclist volumes?

Weekdays saw a 17% increase in pedestrian and a 65% increase in bicyclist volumes. Weekends saw a 31% increase in pedestrian and an 80% increase in bicyclist volumes.

How can businesses report concerns about impacts to parking?

There are no changes to parking proposed as part of the Slow Streets initiative. Slow Streets are designated with temporary signage and barriers aimed to reduce through vehicle traffic. We anticipate there will be no impact on parking for businesses/residents on or near Slow Streets. If you have specific concerns, please contact the SFMTA at the links below.

How can I learn more about slow streets?
The SFMTA manages the slow streets program. Their FAQs are here.