Geary Rapid Project

We're celebrating 10 years of Muni Forward! Pick up a limited-editionMuni Forward Passport at a Transit Month event or participating business while supplies last during the month of September 2024. Use the passport to explore ten of Muni Forward’s project corridors, including the 38 Geary.

SFMTA.com/GearyRapid
Project Introduction

The Geary Rapid Project was completed in fall 2021. We thank our community partners and all residents and merchants along the corridor for your support throughout construction. This three-year capital project, completed on schedule and on budget, has upgraded one of San Francisco’s busiest corridors between Market and Stanyan streets with safety improvements, more reliable bus service and utility upgrades.We’re excited to share the many ways it has made traveling on Geary a safer, more accessible experience for everyone.

Geary has long been one of San Francisco’s busiest arterials, connecting the heart of the city to the ocean. Vibrant Japanese and African American communities in the Western Addition were torn apart in the 1960s when Geary Boulevard was converted into an eight-lane expressway. This change made Geary a less safe street: a person walking on Geary was eight times more likely to be involved in a serious collision than the average San Francisco street.

Designed with local input, thisMuni Forward project has upgraded three miles of Geary from Market to Stanyan with new bus lanes and crosswalks, calming the Geary Expressway andhelping to reconnect long-divided communities. Pedestrian countdown signals let people know how much time they have left to cross. Median refuges and sidewalk extensions help shorten crossing distances.

Thanks to new transit lanes, transit signal priority, optimized bus stop locations and bus bulb-outs, the 38 Geary is faster than ever with up to 18% shorter bus travel times and a 37% improvement in reliability. Learn more about the Geary Rapid Project evaluation results.

A second phase of Geary improvements is underway to bring similar transit and safety benefits west of Stanyan Street to 34th Avenue, with quick-build improvements already complete.

Learn more:

 

 

Project Status
  1. Completed
Cost Estimate
$36 million SFMTA scope + $30 million coordinated infrastructure upgrades
Current Phase or Stage
Substantially Completed
Predicted Completion
2021
Project Success
On budget
On schedule
Improvements

Project Location

The Geary Rapid Project included transit and safety improvements on Geary and O'Farrell between Stanyan and Market streets. Plans are also underway for theGeary Boulevard Improvement Project to bring improvements west of Stanyan to 34th Avenue.

 

Project Timeline

Infographic representing the Geary Rapid Project schedule. The upper half displays a Gantt chart of major work types. The section from Stanyan to Van Ness has transit and safety treatments in the second half of 2018, utility upgrades in 2019 and 2020, and major transit and safety improvements in 2020 and the first half of 2021. Demolition of the Steiner Street pedestrian bridge over an entire weekend took place in May 2020. The section from Van Ness to Market has transit and safety treatments in the second half of 2018, utility upgrades from mid-2019 to mid-2021, and major transit and safety improvements from mid-2019 to mid-2021. The lower half of the infographic shows the individual elements of the major work types, along with small icons for each. Transit and safety improvements include bus-only lanes, pedestrian safety treatments, bus stop changes, and roadway striping changes. Utility upgrades include water main replacement on Geary (Masonic to Market), fiber-optic conduits (Stanyan to Gough), and sewer main replacement (primarily Masonic to Van Ness). Major transit and safety improvements include bus bulbs, upgraded traffic signals, pedestrian bulbs, and roadway repaving (Masonic to Van Ness).

Coordinated Work Sponsored by Partner City Agencies

To minimize the impact of construction on our streets, San Francisco has established a City policy requiring the coordination of construction projects in the public right-of-way. Repairs alone are not enough to keep pace with our aging and seismically vulnerable infrastructure.

The Geary Rapid Project partnered with other City agencies to bring much-needed improvements to Geary, including:

  • San Francisco Public Works-sponsored roadway repaving upgraded 1.5 miles of deteriorated streets to provide you with a smoother ride.
  • San Francisco Public Utilities Commission-sponsored work replaced or rehabilitated 1.5 miles of aging sewer lines and two miles of water lines, ensuring residents and businesses will continue to receive high quality and reliable services around the clock. Many of these sewer and water lines under Geary were over 100 years old!
  • Department of Technology-co-sponsored installation of 1.75 miles of underground conduits for fiber optic cables to provide internet services and connect traffic signals.

Geary Rapid Project Flyer

Download and Print Geary Rapid Project Flyers

 

Geary at Buchanan Street after the Geary Rapid Project. In addition to red transit lanes, a new crosswalk was installed to help reconnect the Fillmore, Japantown and St. Francis Square neighborhoods.

Photo shows new crosswalk at Geary and Buchanan with median waiting area and decorative panels highlighting the neighboring communities. Previously, the closest crosswalks were two long blocks apart. This new crossing provides a direct connection between Japantown, the Fillmore and St. Francis Square. 

 

Photo of people using new crosswalks at Geary and Steiner, with the Steiner bridge removed

Photo of improved Geary and Steiner streets, with the Steiner Bridge removed and improved crosswalks and medians.

 

Project video(s)
Geary Rapid Project Ribbon Cutting 10 20 21
California Strategic Growth Council
Federal Transit Administration
Muni logo
San Francisco County Transportation Authority logo
San Francisco Water Power Sewer logo
San Francisco Public Works logo
Vision Zero SF logo