SAN FRANCISCO — San Francisco transit leaders will temporarily close a stretch of Lombard Street, a tourist spot known as the ‘‘crookedest street in the world.’’
On Tuesday, the city’s Municipal Transportation Agency unanimously approved a pilot closure to vehicles on the oft-photographed, well-traveled curvy and winding thoroughfare for four consecutive weekends starting in late June and including the Fourth of July weekend during the busy summer tourist season. The vehicle closure does not apply to residents who live in the area.
About an average of 2,000 vehicles travel on the street each weekend day during that period, the city said.
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The world-famous hilly street in San Francisco’s Russian Hill neighborhood has been featured on television, in movies, and even in video games, and is known for its one-block stretch of winding brick road that consists of eight hairpin turns.
Tourists enjoy driving down the crooked street with flower gardens at every corner like it is an amusement park ride. It is perhaps the most popular tourist destination in San Francisco besides the iconic Golden Gate Bridge, the cable cars, and Fisherman’s Wharf.
The temporary closing idea came at the request of Supervisor Mark Farrell following a stream of complaints by some residents, who want to curb the street’s chronic gridlock mostly due to curious tourists.