Visit the official website for the Project: www.octaviacentral.org

The California Department of Transportation website. Learn more about the project they describe as "Widen Central Freeway" : http://www.dot.ca.gov/dist4/  District 4 Director is Bijan Sartipi.

1997 Central Freeway Environmental Impact Statement Caltrans EIS

See the Caltrans renderings of the Central Freeway elevated structure: ramp drawings.

Octavia Boulevard September 2004	Octavia Blvd illustration (octaviacentral.org)

Octavia Boulevard History

BOULEVARD YES!  FREEWAY NO!
There was an alternative recommended by The San Francisco Planning Department, the Better Neighborhoods Plan for Market and Octavia.

See page 88 and 89 of the Octavia & Market Street Plan (page 30 of the pdf document) read the recommendation for an extended boulevard  
Streets and Open Spaces

The San Francisco Planning Department is publishing news about their work to promote, as their mission statement says, "...the orderly and harmonious use of land, and improved quality of life for our diverse community and future generations." General Plan , Transportation

Freeways in neighborhoods is an environmental justice issue!
SAN FRANCISCO ADOPTS THE PRECAUTIONARY PRINCIPLE
The San Francisco Board of Supervisors adopted the precautionary principle as city and county policy June 17, 2003, a stunning and unprecedented breakthrough in the management of environmental matters in the U.S. Read more about the Precautionary Principle.

Some say the freeway revolt is over, but not for the neighbors in the North Mission. A giant concrete highway threatens, that will divide their community and cover their streets for another generation.
Links to articles about the freeway:

Last Days of the Central Freeway

A 21st Century Problem

Farewell to freeway

Communties healing from the darkness and isolation of freeways:

"We changed the course of transportation in West Oakland forever by planning, organizing, demanding, and shepherding the rerouting of the Cypress Freeway ... Never before have so many benefited from the initiatives of a community-based group."
-- Paul Cobb
Citizens Emergency Relief Team (CERT)

Cypress Freeway Replacement Project

"There's no barricade anymore. One person talked about how, after the freeway collapsed, it was like moving from darkness to light. There's almost poetic feelings that have come out into the community."
-- April Philips, landscape architect designing a memorial park with the help of West Oakland artists.

OAKLAND Park rises from freeway rubble

The city of Atlanta has an truly visionary plan for dealing with their transportation issues that serves a very diverse community. Watch this short Quicktime movie about the Atlanta BeltLine, its very inspiring!!!
Atlanta BeltLine

Hayes Valley boasts "the new boulevard will provide a beautiful, livable environment and address the needs of commuters, residents and businesses alike." South of market had only a brief glimpse of sunlight and restored vitality before being cast back into the darkness and blight that they suffered during the previous five decades under the ill-fated 1950's freeway.

top; archival photo of the freeway, bottom; artist's rendering shown to voters.

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