After a marathon meeting where hundreds of people weighed in, the San Francisco Board of Supervisors has approved the permanent closure of John F. Kennedy Drive to cars.
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The meeting lasted 12 hours and ended in a split vote of seven to four, granting the 1.5 mile stretch of road in Golden Gate Park to be reserved for foot and bike traffic.
Marta Lindsey with Walk SF told KCBS Radio some activists have pushed for the closure for years. "There's always been a lot of frustration that this most important stretch of street in our most important park was taken over by cars," she said. "Now it's not."
JFK Drive was first closed to vehicles two years ago at the start of the pandemic.
During his final board meeting, Supervisor Matt Haney said the closures were one of the few positives from coronavirus. "We have something that gets more people to come visit it, it’s a good thing," he emphasized.
Many people were out Wednesday jogging, walking the dog or just trying to get to work. A cyclist told KCBS Radio she feels the road is much safer now.
"There are a lot of roads in Golden Gate Park that aren't closed and I've had some scary encounters with cars on those roads, so having part of JFK closed to cars is really exciting," she said.
Despite the celebration following the heated debate, concerns do remain, as some argue the closure adversely impacts people of color, the disabled and elderly. "You closed JFK, at least give those populations access to the great highway," a resident stated during the meeting. "Do not exclude them from that."
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