Pedestrianism Vol. 2

Pedestrianism Vol. 2 on Vimeo.

An on-the-ground look at one of the worst streets in San Francisco. The stretch of trash-strewn pavement below the Central Skyway is actually three streets that have been combined into an expressway below the elevated freeway structure. Division Street runs between the Caltrain yard and Bryant St. Division curves South at Bryant and the expressway becomes 13th St it crosses Mission. From Mission it becomes Duboce and gradually narrows and calms down. The Skyway leaves the expressway, curving North and touching down on Market and Octavia.

With three lanes of traffic along most of the road, the expressway has roughly the same road space as the freeway above it. Pedestrians trying to make their way along or across this stretch of town have to deal with loud, echoing traffic noise; multi-street intersections, often without Pedestrian signals; off- and on-ramps for the Skyway; incomplete sidewalks and illegally dumped garbage. The blight surrounding this freeway and the vacant Caltrans properties along its way is noticable for blocks in either direction.

In 1999 the Central Freeway was demolished back to Market Street. The stretch of Octavia Blvd along its former route has since blossomed. Regrettably, it is very unlikely that the Division/13th/Duboce traffic sewer has any hope of a similar fate.