The Masonic Avenue "streetscape" project

Public Works

Not surprising that Walk SF likes the "improvements" to Masonic Avenue:

In just a few days, major safety improvements to Masonic Avenue will be complete. Known for traffic-related injuries, this thoroughfare now has wider sidewalks, sidewalk bulb-outs, tree-lined medians, and raised bike lanes. Go check it out for a dose of inspiration. It's proof-positive for the kinds of Vision Zero changes we can win together.

I've already demonstrated that the claim is a lie that Masonic is "known for traffic-related injuries." But when the delusional mind-set is that entrenched, it's not strictly accurate to call it a deliberate falsehood. 

Instead, Walk SF, the Bicycle Coalition, Jihadists, Republicans and other True Believers really believe their own bullshit. The reference to the Vision Zero fantasy is further proof of a delusional mind-set behind the statement above.

The picture above from Public Works is also a fantasy: there are no cars visible on either Masonic (more than 32,000 cars a day) or Geary (more than 50,000 cars a day), not to mention the woman on a bike with no helmet. So few women ride bikes that bike advocates worry about it.

Way back in 2011, I blogged about the fact-free comments on Masonic Avenue by the first executive director of Walk SF (Streets of SF are not unsafe for pedestrians). 

This part of Masonic, by the way, has always had wide sidewalks, as anyone familiar with the neighborhood knows. 

The "streetscape" bullshit was a branding strategy to avoid calling it a bicycle project, which is what it has always been: a bicycle project with some landscaping, not a "streetscape" project that happens to include bike lanes---the construction of which, not coincidentally, required eliminating 167 street parking spaces.

More on the Masonic Avenue project tomorrow.