If you’ve been waiting for news on what’s supposed to happen with the traffic circle adjacent to the new San Francisco Unified School District’s public elementary school on Owens Street, the next two Thursdays will shed some light.
On June 11, the Mission Bay Citizens’ Advisory Committee (MB CAC) will hear a revised conceptual plan and recommendation for safety improvements from San Francisco County Transportation Authority (SFCTA) senior transportation planner David Long, who will also ask the MB CAC for a Letter of Support for the state grant SFCTA will be seeking to fund the project.
If you can’t make the in-person only meeting in Chase Center’s Generation Thrive Room, join SFCTA’s Virtual Town Hall on June 18. Here’s the link to RSVP.
Preview by MBNA Board
Mission Bay Neighborhood Association’s board of directors met with SFCTA’s David Long on Friday, for a preview before writing a Letter of Support to accompany the state grant application. The new conceptual design David is recommending has a separated bike lane that leaves the sidewalk next to the school dedicated to pedestrian travel. This reflects community feedback SFCTA received on earlier conceptual designs, when they floated conceptual designs that would’ve reduced pedestrian use of the sidewalk substantially and given most of the sidewalk to bicyclists.
The revised plan involves building a raised boardwalk alongside the sidewalk, over the plant beds that serve as stormwater drainage basins, where bicyclists and other riders of wheeled conveyances can travel free of conflict. Raised crosswalks at vehicle points of entry into the traffic circle will calm motorists and slow approaching vehicles, while allowing emergency vehicles to pass. This design has an estimated $2.5-3.5 Million cost, and will allow nine mature trees at the site to remain. Another revised conceptual design that will not be recommended would require removal of all nine trees, and has a bigger price tag.
Sit Tight While It Goes through the Process
MBNA directors probed for a timeline for the project’s completion, and learned there’s still a lengthy process ahead.
The SFCTA board of directors need to approve this phase of the conceptual design. The application for a highly competitive state grant is due later in June. If the grant is approved, transit engineers will turn the conceptual plans into blueprints, and SFCTA will put the project out for contractors to bid on. We’re already looking at
six months to a year for these phases to be fulfilled, before work begins.
Construction is expected to take a year. Plans include traffic management through the circle during the construction phase. There will be additional touchpoints for community outreach later in the process, but these will be mainly for informational purposes. The feedback stage is winding up now.
The grant money would fund all of the above steps plus construction, as well as a “jughandle” waiting space being cut into the sidewalk on Seventh Street at Mission Bay Drive, for bicyclists to be out of the way of southbound Seventh Street traffic until the traffic signal changes, and they can cross Seventh Street.
There would also be money in the grant to fund bicycle safety classes for elementary students at the new school.
Brief Recap of Mission Bay School Access Plan
The study to identify key barriers to safe access and a connected active transportation network leading to the new elementary school began in the Summer / Fall of 2023. SFCTA hosted an in-person Open House and Town Hall #1 in Spring 2024, at the Mission Creek Park Pavilion. This link to SFCTA’s webpage introduces the scope of the study, and shows the Timeline and Status.
As part of public engagement seeking feedback, SFCTA conducted a virtual Town Hall #2 that drew 40+ community members on Feb. 26, 2025. They were joined by Mike Sallaberry, Design Review Manager for San Francisco Municipal Transportation Agency (SFMTA)’s Livable Streets Division. These initial conceptual designs and draft recommendations met pushback from community members who pointed out these plans sacrificed the sidewalk for a bike path at the expense of the pedestrian realm. A recording of Town Hall #2 is posted on YouTube.
Details of SFCTA’s Mission Bay School Access Plan — Town Hall #3 follow below.
The sidewalk between the traffic circle and north border of SFUSD’s new public elementary school property in March 2025, during construction of the school. Pedestrians objected to sacrificing half of the sidewalk’s 12’ width to a bike lane, as proposed in the initial conceptual design and draft recommendation. Photo by Bettina Cohen
SFCTA Virtual Town Hall for Traffic Circle
Date: Thursday, June 18
Time: 5:30 – 6:30 PM
Virtual link: Register for the Zoom Meeting Here (Meeting ID: 811 0959 1583)
Details: A key part of the Mission Bay School Safe Access Plan, this project will upgrade approximately 1000 feet of bikeways facilities between South of Market and Mission Bay, closing a critical network gap and providing a safe route to school between South of Market and Mission Bay Elementary. It connects parks and affordable housing to the school and broader bike network and provides badly needed pedestrian safety improvements on the walking route to a major medical complex. These improvements ensure that disadvantaged community residents have direct, convenient, and safe access to a connected, low-stress network that supports everyday travel to school and essential destinations, such as healthcare centers, parks, and school. Presentation slides will be made available in Chinese, Spanish, and Filipino on our website.
Interpretation Requests: Need interpretation during the Town Hall? Please email communications@sfcta.org at least 48 hours in advance. Interpretation will not be provided if requests aren’t made 48 hours in advance.