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Dear SFMTA Director Jeffrey Tumlin, Parks Director Phil Ginsberg, Mayor London Breed:
A short section of Martin Luther King Jr. Drive in Golden Gate Park, previously reserved for cyclists as part of a unique, safe, mostly car-free route connecting Middle Drive and the J.F.K. Promenade with the western half of the park, was reopened Monday to motorists. This was done to "...alleviate congestion and create a smoother southbound driving trip from the Outer Richmond." This is in addition to the six lanes of Lincoln, four lanes of Irving, and other East-West routes available to motorists for connecting to Sunset.
However, we're concerned about the performance of your media staff. This publication got no notice of the outreach meetings and equity analysis that was done over the past years before making such an important change to a San Francisco street.
Starting today we’re joining @RecParkSF to announce that MLK Drive between Chain of Lakes and Sunset has officially opened for driving. This change will alleviate congestion and create a smoother southbound driving trip from the Outer Richmond. pic.twitter.com/3x6kVuLjXU
Facing east on MLK, recently reopened to cars, at Sunset. Photo: Cyrus Hall
Since the decision was made this week to now return part of that route to motorists--a clear departure from the city's voter-approved "transit first," Vision Zero commitments, etc., not to mention your goal to reduce emissions and "Vehicle Miles Traveled"--no doubt there was extensive outreach and equity analysis done. Or perhaps there was an emergency declaration to allow cars to return here?
We're hoping this documentation can be sent our way now.
A 2016 vigil for Heather Miller, killed in Golden Gate Park a short distance from where SFMTA and the city have now made drives "smoother." Photo: Streetsblog/Rudick
That must be true because the mayor has said it so many times. So presumably the studies or the emergency declaration that justified prioritizing ceding another section of street back to motorists also show that you have done everything possible to keep cyclists and pedestrians safe throughout the city. After all, the city has limited resources and surely you didn't decide to spend them "smoothing" commutes for a handful of motorists before finishing the job of making all streets safe for everyone.
We look forward to reading these documents and studies and thank you in advance for sending them over.
Sincerely,
Roger Rudick
Editor, Streetsblog San Francisco
Note: For more on the sloppy and dangerous implementation of the reversal on MLK, check out Cyrus Hall's Twitter thread.
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