DPW Advances Paving Plans for Steiner/Sanchez Bike Blocks to June

A bumpy ride over temporary trench fill on Steiner Street

The Department of Public Works (DPW) will repave ahead of schedule several blocks of the Wiggle bicycle route due to the poor surface conditions following recent utility construction. Steiner Street north of Duboce to Waller Street will be resurfaced curb-to-curb in June of this year rather than August. The blocks are an essential segment of the Wiggle east-west bike route. As part of the same work order, DPW will apply new asphalt, also curb-to-curb, to Sanchez Street south of Duboce to 14th.

The decision to expedite the paving follows complaints from several cyclists about the especially bumpy surface left by a contractor working for the Water Department along the south side of the streets. The San Francisco Bicycle Coalition (SFBC) requested a speedier response to the problem, and DPW decided it would be less costly to resurface the blocks completely in June rather than make a temporary, partial fix now only to tear up the street again for a full make-over in August as scheduled.

The blocks just north and south of Duboce have been a problem for cyclists for at least the last two years. As reported here, DPW recently repaved the north side of Steiner from Duboce to Herman because of even-worse conditions following winter rains and construction on the block. The south bound lanes of the affected blocks now have a badly-resurfaced utility trench that was meant to be temporary. DPW hoped to wait until August to remedy the situation, especially with the department's tight budge for street repairs. As a result of DPW's re-assessment of the street conditions and SFBC's advocacy, cyclists will soon have a safer route.