On Tuesday of this week, the SF Municipal Transportation Agency (SFMTA) Board of Directors unanimously approved protected bike lanes on Folsom from 11th to Fifth streets. This crucial safety improvement, was raised as a priority by our members, will see construction beginning this month and should be complete by the end of the year. This is a huge victory and an important step towards making one of our busiest and most dangerous streets safe for all.

The new bike lanes will be parking protected, like that pictured above on Seventh Street, complete with transit boarding islands and bike share stations to keep people riding safe on Folsom, a know high-injury corridor. Additional bike lanes on Folsom from 11th Street to 13th Street are also a part of the project. These will bridge the existing gap in the bike network between the Mission and SoMa stretches of Folsom.

A portion of the near-term Folsom Street design. Image courtesy of the SFMTA.

This victory for safe streets in one of our busiest neighborhoods was made possible by our members, many of whom showed up at the meeting to speak in support of the project. It is this type of people-powered action that will be necessary to win parallel, near-term improvements on Howard and a robust long-term project for both of the streets.

Our SoMa Member Committee meets regularly to strategize around SoMa street projects and will regroup to determine what’s next for our campaign. Together we can bring about the progress we want to see on our streets.