May 23, 2019
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
[email protected]
**PRESS RELEASE**
San Francisco –– Experience over six miles of car-free streets on June 9 as Sunday Streets connects JFK Drive in Golden Gate Park all the way to the Great Highway at Sloat Boulevard from 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. The free event gives attendees a chance to experience open space and reclaim our streets for health, exercise and human connection.
The Sunset/Golden Gate Park route connects with SF Rec and Park’s car-free Sundays on the east side of JFK Drive. Activity Hubs are located inside the park at beautiful Spreckels Lake by the Bison Paddock, and Murphy Windmill, just inside the park near the intersection of MLK and Lincoln Drives.
While Sunday Streets usually brings open space to neighborhoods that lack it, this event is unique in that expands upon car-free routes in the city’s premier open space in the city’s west side. As the City explores making some streets permanently car-free, Sunday Streets lets San Franciscans envision how that might look and feel in our world-class park.
“As we head into Golden Gate Park’s 150th anniversary next year, Sunday Streets helps us imagine how we can use our park in the next 150 years as we respond to climate change and embrace sustainable transportation as the primary mode of getting about our city and open spaces,” said San Francisco Recreation and Park Department General Manager Phil Ginsburg.
Sunday Streets longest route of the season is an ideal place for both new and experienced bike riders – along with roller-skaters, scooter-riders and people who use wheelchairs – to take in the beauty of the coastline and world-renowned park without worrying about car traffic.
Free bike rentals from Ford GoBike, skip and JUMP will be readily available, along with SF Bicycle Coalition’s Freedom for Training Wheels program, which teaches toddlers and young children to ride a bike without training wheels in a safe, patient environment.
And be sure to pick up the Explore Local Map for a fun, reusable map of nearby small businesses, organizations and resources you can use all year round.
Inspired by the Ciclovía in Bogotá, Colombia, Sunday Streets is a series of free, fun open street events empowering local communities to transform one to four miles of car-congested streets into car-free community spaces for kids to play, seniors to stroll, organizations to connect and neighbors to meet. Over a mile of cultural performances, health resources, live music and open space provides free opportunities for all at ten yearly events.
Nonprofit Livable City runs both Sunday Streets and Play Streets, a program empowering neighbors to transform their block into an accessible, car-free open space on a regular basis. Both programs are sponsored by the SFMTA and other City agencies, and Sunday Streets would not be possible without crucial services like Muni bus re-routing or traffic control officers for public safety.
Small businesses, residents, nonprofits and local groups bring activities, volunteers and performances to the car-free routes, with each contributing a distinctive character and energy to the day. A local hire program employs San Francisco residents for outreach and event-day support.
Transforming miles of car-dominated City streets into open space is possible through the collaboration and hard work of hundreds of volunteers, neighbors, nonprofits and small businesses. Donate, exhibit, volunteer or sponsor Sunday Streets in 2019 to be part of a sustainable, greener and more accessible future. For more information, visit www.SundayStreetsSF.com.
Sunday Streets 2019 Season Schedule
March 10 – Mission 1
March 31 – Excelsior 1
April 14 – Tenderloin 1
May 5 – Bayview/Dogpatch
June 9 – Sunset/GGP
July 14 – Mission 2
August 18 – SoMa
September 8 – Tenderloin 2
September 22 – Western Addition
October 20 – Excelsior
The Sunday Streets 2019 season is made possible by the following season sponsors: Bay Area Air Quality Management District (BAAQMD), San Francisco Department of Children, Youth & Their Families (DCYF), Mission Housing Development Corporation, San Francisco Department of Public Works (SFPUC), Genentech, Office of Economic and Workforce Development (OEWD), Sutter/CPMC, Ford GoBike, iHeartMedia, Skip, Sutter/CPMC, iHeart Media, Jump Bikes and Xfinity/Comcast, and supporting sponsor Canopy Health
About Sunday Streets
Sunday Streets is a program of the nonprofit Livable City, presented in partnership with the San Francisco Municipal Transportation Agency and the San Francisco Department of Public Health and the Shape Up SF Coalition. Additional City support comes from the Department of Public Works, Recreation & Parks Department, SF Police Department, SF County Transportation Authority, San Francisco Mayor London Breed and her offices and the SF Board of Supervisors.
About Livable City
Livable City is dedicated to increasing affordable housing, improving transportation, land use, open space, and environmental policies, and supporting grassroots initiatives to make San Francisco a safer, healthier, and more accessible city. For more information on Livable City, visit: https://livablecity.org. For more information about Sunday Streets, including the Sunday Streets event activity guide, visit: www.SundayStreetsSF.com. For information on Muni routes and vehicle access, call 511 or go to www.sfmta.com
