Pedestrian Safety Initiatives: Harriet Street
In our bustling neighborhood, characterized by its dense streets and vibrant energy, we recognize the need to address the potential dangers posed by vehicular traffic. Since the CBD was formed in 2020, we are frequently asked by residents and business owners to address pedestrian safety through traffic calming measures and streetscape activations.
At the heart of our concerns lies Harriet Street, a small alleyway nestled between Harrison Street and Howard Street. Harriet is home to critical spaces for our community. It is a walking route for many families and children attending school and programs at Bessie Carmichael, Gene Friend Recreation Center, United Playaz, and Victoria Manalo Draves Park. The street is also heavily residential, with single-family and multifamily housing.
This alley has become a shortcut for motorists seeking to bypass congested main roads, resulting in reckless speeding. This behavior puts pedestrians at great risk and undermines the overall livability of our neighborhood.
SOMA West CBD, along with residents along Harriet Street, proposes that the City implement traffic calming measures to force motorists to reduce their speed on Harriet.
There are a number of solutions that the City can implement based on the street. For example, speed humps. Any solution for traffic calming would NOT require the removal of existing street parking.
Are you a resident of Harriet street?:
We need you! At least 20 residents of Harriet street need to sign a paper application SWCBD has on a clipboard. To sign, email erica@swcbd.org, and we can either bring the application to you, or you can walk to the nearby SWCBD office (1066 Howard Street, close to Harriet and Howard).
Interested in traffic calming on another street?
This only happens with resident support. Email erica@swcbd.org to learn more
Learn more from SFMTA’s website
The City’s Traffic Calming Program focuses on lower-cost measures that slow vehicular speeds on residential streets. The program does not consider larger-scale solutions to traffic congestion or speeding challenges, speeding on higher-volume arterial streets, nor does it involve multi-block infrastructure improvements. Instead, traffic calming is a resident-directed, block-by-block solution to address mid-block speeding on residential streets.
