The San Francisco Sierra Club supported Prop. K in 2024. I did not agree then with closing the Upper Great Highway to cars between Lincoln Way and Sloat Boulevard, and I do not agree with the the club’s opposition to Prop. G.
Neighbors have legitimate concerns regarding the need to use this highway. Detours create more stress and more pollution. There is nothing particularly ecological about Diablo Canyon-powered electric bikes and motorbikes taking over the stretch. Nor are yoga classes, skateboarding or parades activities which can not be staged elsewhere. Given the inhospitable fog and winds that beset the coast, these do not appear to be a great use of public space, profit making or not.
Throughout the past few years, media coverage has endlessly fixated on traffic volume metrics, safety statistics and granular debates about commute times. Yet, amid the noise of endless technical debates, something fundamental and crucial is missing from the conversation: the immense, transformational and long-term benefit of building a lasting community within Sunset Dunes Park compared to the fleeting, short-term convenience of turning it back into a coastal highway for car traffic.
Proposition G provides a practical middle ground by restoring weekday access to the roadway for commuters, working parents and daily traffic, while preserving full weekend and holiday car-free closures for coastal recreation.
Advocates of restoring the status quo on the former Upper Great Highway are hailing a court victory that will allow a proposition to do so on the November ballot.
Just as it was announced that a proposed measure to reopen the Upper Great Highway to vehicle traffic will make the November ballot, a lawsuit has been filed by supporters of Sunset Dunes to try to stop it.
How can the City justify allowing hazardous, uncertified “DIY” projects on a highway median while legitimate neighborhood parks are left completely broke? Rec & Parks must halt this installation.
Along Ocean Beach, the Upper Great Highway has been many things to San Francisco. The stretch of coastline was once home to attractions like Playland at the Beach, where generations of San Franciscans made memories. During COVID-19, it became a lifeline for residents seeking outdoor activities. On April 12, 2025, after debates, a recall election and a citywide ballot measure, Sunset Dunes, a two-mile coastal park, became a reality for San Francisco residents.
The closure of the UGH and the creation of Sunset Dunes Park has been a great boon to the Sunset and our City, enriching and protecting our residents and our coastline.
The five candidates seeking to represent District 4 at the Board of Supervisors appeared at a forum on March 4 at the United Irish Cultural Center. While they expressed similar points of view on public safety, education and the Municipal Transportation Agency (SFMTA), there was disagreement about the Upper Great Highway’s (UGH) transformation into Sunset Dunes, as well as Mayor Daniel Lurie’s family zoning legislation.
In the November election, westside residents may be asked to decide the fate of the Upper Great Highway (UGH). This time our community’s safety may hang in the balance.
On Friday, Feb. 20, proponents for restoring a previous compromise to share the Upper Great Highway submitted at the SF Department of Elections their intent to gather signatures to put the issue before San Francisco voters in the November election.
But over time, I’ve seen what this space has become, and it has changed my mind. Every day, people are out there walking, biking, gathering and connecting.
Last month, a ballot measure that would have restored weekday vehicle access to the Upper Great Highway (UGH) fell one supervisor’s signature short of making it onto the ballot.
Despite losing at the ballot box and in court, those opposed to banning private motor vehicles on the Upper Great Highway between Lincoln Way and Sloat Boulevard plan to start gathering signatures for another ballot measure in November.
