San Francisco is testing new electronic signs along Third Street in hopes of preventing drivers from making illegal left turns.
San Francisco transit officials are testing new electronic signs at two intersections along Third Street in hopes of preventing drivers from making illegal left turns.
The testing of the new signs is part of the San Francisco Municipal Transportation Agency’s Embarcadero/T-Third Signal Priority Project, which aims for improving service on Muni’s T-Third line.
One of those improvements includes installing bigger electronic signs along intersections on Third Street to give drivers a heads up of an oncoming train. Officials said the new signage is twice as large compared the older signage.
The transit agency is testing the new signs at Third and King streets and at Third and 23rd streets.
Smaller electronic signs are already installed along intersections on Third Street, but drivers continue to make illegal left turns.
The SFMTA said at least 50 percent of collisions over the last five years between T-Third trains and private vehicles were due to drivers making illegal left turn, which have resulted in Muni delays on the T-Third for Muni passengers.
While most left turns are not allowed on Third Street, the ones that do allow left turns require drivers to wait for a left turn green signal, according to the SFMTA.
The SFMTA said it will seek the opinions of Muni operators and from the public on which sign they prefer. The public can take a survey online.
Officials said they plan to start installing the new electronic signs in the spring at intersections where drivers can make a left turn. At intersections where drivers are not allowed to make left turns, officials said they will install “safe-hit” posts.
Other improvements along the Embarcadero and Third Street include standardizing the train signals to one system and changing the traffic signal timing to give more green lights to the T-Third.
Jerold serves as a reporter and San Francisco Bureau Chief for SFBay covering transportation and occasionally City Hall and the Mayor's Office in San Francisco. His work on transportation has been recognized by the San Francisco Press Club. Born and raised in San Francisco, he graduated from San Francisco State University with a degree in journalism. Jerold previously wrote for the San Francisco Public Press, a nonprofit, noncommercial news organization. When not reporting, you can find Jerold taking Muni to check out new places to eat in the city.
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Cyclist too
Signs won’t work as long as people are self-absorbed and inattentive. Maybe have stricter licensing requirements to begin with, including a test on signage. I don’t recall being asked a single question about signs on the test I took.
In case anyone was wondering, this is why we can’t have nice things. How much time and money will be expended to solve a problem that shouldn’t even exist? The signage prohibiting left turns across the T right-of-way is very clear.
Sure, there are probably ways in which the design of the T could have been better, but the real problem here is willfully reckless drivers.
Two more areas that need help. 4th & King needs some improvements in not just signal priority, but extending lights to allow more than 1 train in each direction to cross the intersection. No reason why T and N in same direction can’t go through without waiting 3 mins for the next complete light cycle.
Same issue on Embarcadero and Folsom where trains enter and exist the tunnel. If the lights on Embarcadero would stay green for 5 secs longer, most trains would get delayed by 3 mins while waiting for the next cycle.
Part of the delay at Folsom/Embarcadero is switching from automatic control in the subway to manual. Yeah, I know, it shouldn’t be complicated or take time, but we’re dealing with Muni and added delays are the norm. The inbound problem also suffers from trains backed up at the turnaround between the portal and Embarcadero station so N/K trains often sit outside waiting their turn.
On rare occasions, you’ll find E and K/N/T cross folsom on the same light cycle, but that’s only if drivers are on top of their game and pay attention. That’s why adding 5-10 secs to the light cycle would do wonders.
Another easy solution is for inbound direction, always give priority to E/F tracks since those trains don’t stop until Harrison. Then add 5 secs to the light cycle and K/N/T inbound can cross Folsom and stop at the Folsom station. The timing is sooo close that’s sad no one has improved it.
Federal safety requirements prevent trains from getting too close together at the Fourth & King intersection as trains merge, diverge, and cross over. It’s particular to rail standards and can’t be synced with the light.
The problem is that turning T trains add an extra phase to the signal, which will go away when the Central Subway opens. At that point the turn will be used mainly for trains pulling in and out. But normal service will have the T trains crossing the intersection north-south with traffic, while the E & N lines with cross east-west with traffic on and off I-280. It’s a bit complicated, but it’s also why the lanes on the Fourth street bridge don’t seem to make sense right now.
The SFMTA spent a couple years testing and researching options, but nothing which could make a dent could happen any faster than it would be disrupted for Central Subway construction anyway.
After T turns onto KIng, the lights switch and there a 30 second cycle for traffic traveling straight. If that cycle were extended by 10 secs, an N could easily cross the intersection with enough margin for safety.
Just look at how closely we get Inbound N and Ts stacked up before 4th & King intersection, so it feels like it’s possible to have two trains go per cycle.
Also, that intersection is for muni is strangely designed where the switching happens at the intersection. Everywhere in Europe, the divergent track happens mid-block, so you can have 1 turning train and 1 straight train approach the intersection. There’s room for 3 tracks at that spot (and that cross-over would then be moved back closer to 3rd and King.
Anyway, not much use arguing, but just disappointing when best practices are ignored where examples are everywhere at 4th & King with every car direction having a left turn pocket.
Signal priority should have been in place when the T line opened nearly 10 years ago. It’s not like it’s a brand new technology that just appeared out of nowhere.