SAN FRANCISCO – San Francisco is working on the area near the fatal crash on the West Portal safer, but residents are afraid the city will make a hasty decision.
Cynthia Skinner, a longtime West Portal resident, wants the city to put the brakes on the proposed traffic safety plan so she and her neighbors have more time to gather information.
“I wanted to know who was in charge, who made the decisions. I didn’t receive that information. How did this come about so quickly,” Skinner said.
Pat Dunbar, who has called West Portal home for 20 years, fears the city is making a hasty decision, spurred by the tragic death of a family of four.
“The accident happened right there. It’s very sad and it’s a terrible accident. But if you change that, it doesn’t change anything. They haven’t even released a report yet on why the accident happened. So SFMTA hasn’t finished their report yet about the accident and yet they come up with this proposal,” said Pat Dunbar.
A spokesperson for the San Francisco Municipal Transportation Agency said the agency has not made any decisions yet and this is just an opportunity to hear from the public.
“We’re in the process of gathering feedback from community members, and based on that feedback we’re going to look at the proposal and see that there may be some things that we need to change that we weren’t aware of yet or maybe that they share it with us,” said Victoria Wise, SFMTA chief of staff.
A key aspect of the project is eliminating all left turns at the intersections defined by West Portal Avenue, Ulloa Street, Lenox Way and Claremont Boulevard to protect pedestrians.
Loui and Megan, who visit the area daily despite living in the Sunset District, believe the changes will increase safety.
“I support the proposal which I consider a complete compromise on closing West Portal to cars. That main road would be an ideal scenario, but I think this is a compromise to make it safer for everyone using West Portal.” said Megan Warner.
In the meantime, Skinner said West Portal is a neighborhood still dealing with the shock and grief of the family’s death while trying to understand whether the city’s plan would actually make them safer.
