Future of San Francisco’s Great Highway in Jeopardy
Commentary
John Adams observed: “Public business must always be done by somebody. It will be done by somebody or other: If wise men decline it, others will not; if honest men refuse it, others will not.” Someone else proclaimed: “Nothing intoxicates some people like a sip of authority.”
That’s currently the problem affecting residents and business owners in our Sunset and Richmond Districts regarding the Upper Great Highway, a four-lane divided roadway running north-south for two miles between Lincoln Way and Sloat Boulevard. Immediately east is an adjacent, paved multi-use recreational path paralleling the Great Highway. Immediately west lies a parallel dirt path with sand dunes above an expansive sandy beach which feeds into the Pacific Ocean. No four-way intersections exist on the entire Great Highway, meaning no automobile can turn right or left and no cross-traffic, thus ensuring safety! It constitutes the shortest, most efficient route for commuters travelling to or from the Sunset and Richmond Districts and the Peninsula or other destinations south. It is also the most efficient route for San Franciscans and others travelling to and from Ocean Beach, the Zoo, Fort Miley Veterans Hospital, Golden Gate Park, Legion of Honor, Beach Chalet and adjacent soccer fields, Lakeshore Plaza, and schools and parks in the Richmond and Sunset. Before COVID-19, 17,600–19,900 drivers travelled the Great Highway daily.