Don't Cut Off Bayview for Two Years

The bridge will include two vehicular travel lanes in each direction, with transit lanes located in the center. Preliminary design concepts indicate that the sidewalk area will also accommodate bicycle lanes; however, it has not yet been determined how the bicycle lanes will be separated or protected.

The project team has been working closely with the Port of San Francisco, and this effort is coordinated as part of the broader regional waterfront planning process. Today, during high tides, the bridge sits only slightly above the water level. Sea level rise projections indicate that, without improvements, the bridge could experience regular flooding and become impassable in the coming decades. To address this risk, the project proposes raising the bridge by approximately three feet.

The amount the bridge can raise is constrained by the grade requirements for Muni light rail vehicles, which can only operate safely on relatively gradual slopes. Raising the bridge higher would require extending the approaches farther into the surrounding community, resulting in greater impacts on nearby streets and properties. Current projections indicate that raising the bridge by three feet would provide approximately 75 to 100 years of resilience against anticipated sea level rise.

When the T Third Street project was originally planned approximately 35 years ago, the bridge was only about 50 years old and was not identified as needing major rehabilitation or replacement at that time. As the bridge has aged, its condition and infrastructure needs have changed. The project team is now coordinating efforts to ensure that, while the bridge is closed, other nearby and parallel infrastructure improvements can also move forward efficiently.

Funding has been secured for preliminary design and environmental phases. Additional funding has been programmed but not yet secured for the remaining phases of the project.

The project team is working with Caltrans to confirm and finalize the scope of work that is eligible for federal funding. Eligible scope is 88.53% federally funded with the remaining 11.47% local match per Caltrans Highway Bridge Program requirements.

Federal funding has not yet been secured for detailed design and construction phases. The federal funds are from the Federal Highway Administration (FHWA). The California Department of Transportation (Caltrans) has responsibility for programming and prioritizing how those funds are distributed throughout the state.

Project funding is influenced by factors such as urgency, safety needs, and readiness to proceed. The project team has emphasized the critical condition of the bridge to support its competitiveness for funding.

A major milestone in advancing eligibility for funding is completion of environmental review and approval. Approval is anticipated this summer. Once received, the project will be considered "shovel-ready," meaning it will have completed the necessary planning and environmental clearance and will be authorized to proceed into detailed design and construction once funding is allocated. This status strengthens the project's position in an increasingly competitive financial environment.

Building a new bridge before removing the existing structure would require constructing it adjacent to the current bridge. This is not feasible due to limited available space and the proximity of private properties. It would also require additional land acquisition and permitting approvals, which would be challenging to obtain. In addition, shifting the bridge location would alter the transit alignment, resulting in additional design and construction work and extending the overall project schedule.

This approach is not feasible due to the bridge's structural design. The bridge is supported by three primary girders, including a center girder that limits how much of the structure can be removed at one time without losing structural stability. Less than half of the bridge could be removed if it were staged, which makes keeping portions active impractical and not feasible.

In addition, the overhead electrification system for the rail line creates significant safety constraints during construction and needs to be de-energized to perform work at the deck level. As a result, rail service would still need to be shut down to safely complete the work, even if construction were phased on one side of the bridge.

The project team has evaluated accelerated bridge construction methods, including prefabricating bridge components offsite and transporting them into place by barge. However, constructing an entirely new bridge adjacent to the existing structure and then sliding it into place is not practical at this location due to the bridge's size, the constrained site conditions, and the complexity of the transit track infrastructure and overhead systems.

That said, the project does plan to use prefabricated components where feasible. Portions of the new bridge can be constructed offsite, staged on barges adjacent to the site, and assembled after the existing bridge is dismantled. This approach is intended to help streamline construction and reduce overall impacts where possible.

The current two-year estimate is intended to provide a realistic and conservative projection of the construction duration. As the project advances through detailed design and additional construction experts are brought onto the team, opportunities may be identified to shorten the schedule or potentially allow for partial reopening of the bridge during construction. Those options will become clearer as design and construction planning progresses.

Public Works (DPW) will continue to build trust with the community by maintaining transparency throughout the project. This includes regular updates on the project timeline and construction progress through multiple channels, such as community presentations, mailed notifications, and updates on the project website.

To improve schedule reliability and build confidence in delivery, the project is being advanced with key risk-reduction measures in place. Construction will not begin until federal funding is fully authorized, local funding commitments are secured, and design is substantially complete. In addition, thorough site condition investigations will be completed in advance to reduce the likelihood of unforeseen conditions during construction. These steps are intended to minimize uncertainty, improve cost and schedule certainty, and increase the likelihood that the project is delivered on time or ahead of the current two-year estimate.

Community engagement and the Community Mobility Strategy will begin in the detailed design phase.

Engagement will occur on a recurring basis, with additional outreach as needed for key decisions. To stay informed, please sign up for the project email list.

The construction contract will include federal Disadvantaged Business Enterprise (DBE) requirements, which set participation goals for certified small and underrepresented businesses. Contractors will be required to meet these goals as part of their work on the project.

In addition, the project team will strongly encourage and support local hiring wherever possible. This includes coordinating with community partners and workforce agencies such as the Office of Economic and Workforce Development (OEWD) to connect qualified local workers and contractors with bidding and subcontracting opportunities.

The project will include Disadvantaged Business Enterprise (DBE) goals and workforce provisions and will coordinate with the San Francisco Office of Economic and Workforce Development (OEWD), which works with unions, contractors, and training programs to help connect qualified residents to job and apprenticeship opportunities.

The bridge closure is currently estimated to last approximately two years. As the project advances into the detailed design phase, the project team will continue evaluating opportunities to shorten the construction duration and minimize disruptions as much as possible.

Emergency access needs were evaluated in coordination with emergency response agencies. The San Francisco Fire Department (SFFD) reviewed response routes and confirmed that emergency vehicles would be able to access the area via surrounding street networks. In addition, the San Francisco Police Department (SFPD) can provide support from the water if necessary, using their low-profile boats for access to the inner part of the harbor.

The project is still in the early planning stages, and the footprint is primarily limited to the bridge and its immediate approaches. Even at this stage, the project team recognizes that construction will affect key industrial, emergency response, and utility corridors in the surrounding area.

Preliminary assessments of these impacts have been completed and are documented in the Environmental Impact Report. As the project advances into the detailed design phase, the team will continue active coordination with stakeholders to ensure access needs are clearly identified early and refined as design and construction planning progresses.

Current estimates indicate approximately 20,000 vehicles per day on Third Street. These figures are based on the most recent analysis included in the project's Environmental Impact Report, specifically the Transportation Impact Study.

The project team will continue to update traffic data as the project advances, including collecting and reviewing more current counts prior to the start of construction to ensure planning and mitigation measures reflect the most up-to-date conditions.

These questions are being addressed through the Community Mobility Strategy, which is currently in development. The project team recognizes the importance of ensuring that detour routes can safely handle increased traffic.

Options are being evaluated, including potential lane reconfigurations on corridors such as Evans Avenue to better support transit, freight, and emergency access. No decisions have been made yet, and proposed improvements will be brought to the community for feedback before finalizing a plan.

Currently, SFPUC-led infrastructure projects are affecting these streets. The project team is aware of existing roadway conditions and the importance of these corridors as potential detour routes and will be working with SFPUC and other partners to ensure readiness and the ability to handle anticipated traffic levels.

Bikes and pedestrians will still be able to use Illinois Street Bridge, since there is already a separate area for those users.

We have tested whether buses could also operate on the bridge, but lane widths are constrained—one direction is narrower than the other—which raises safety concerns, particularly for larger vehicles like buses, tour buses, and trucks due to potential side mirror conflicts. At this time, two-way bus operations and broader vehicle access are still being evaluated, and no decisions have been made.

We are also looking at system redundancy and what happens if the bridge is temporarily blocked due to an incident. These questions, including any potential changes or improvements to the Illinois Street Bridge, will continue to be part of ongoing community and technical discussions as we collect more data and refine options.

The Van Ness Avenue and the Central Subway projects were managed by SFMTA. This project will abide by the constraints of federal funding requirements and will not provide direct monetary compensation to impacted businesses. The team plans to coordinate with the Office of Economic and Workforce Development (OEWD) to understand potential non-monetary support strategies and to ensure that business impacts are identified early and addressed where feasible through mitigation planning and outreach.

For federally funded capital projects, any mitigation funding must comply with eligibility requirements tied to those funds and be directly related to documented project impacts.

We are working with partner agencies to identify what types of support or mitigation may be feasible within those constraints and whether any existing programs can be used to address community impacts where appropriate.