The northbound lanes of 19th Avenue (State Route 1) between Sloat Boulevard and Lincoln Way will close Friday, April 24 at 7 a.m. and remain closed until Monday, April 27 at 5 a.m. One lane will stay open, but only for public transit, emergency responders and local access.
The work is part of the second and final phase of the 19th Avenue Rehabilitation Project, which will repave roughly 18.8 lane miles between Lincoln Way and Holloway Avenue. Caltrans says grouping the work into three weekend shutdowns reduces the overall impact from 40 days to 10 days.
Residents who live and work near 19th Avenue say they're preparing for another weekend of backups, especially after last weekend's 55-hour closure on eastbound I80.
"It's never ending," one driver said as cars moved through the corridor Thursday.
Another added, "It's always something!"
RELATED: Caltrans begins yearlong project repaving 19th Avenue in SF
Christian Rietta, who lives in SoMa but was running errands near 19th Avenue, said last weekend's I80 closure pushed traffic deep into neighborhood streets.
"All the traffic filtered into side streets. We literally couldn't get out," he said. He expects the Sunset District to feel the biggest impact this time around.
His advice to residents was to stay local, stay at home, go places walking distance, do your grocery shopping now, because driving is going to suck.
Caltrans has scheduled the following shutdowns:
- April 24-27: 70-hour closure of northbound 19th Avenue from Sloat Blvd. to Lincoln Way.
- May 8-11: 70-hour closure of southbound 19th Avenue from Lincoln Way to Sloat Blvd.
- May 22-25 (Memorial Day weekend): 75-hour closure of both directions from Sloat Blvd. to Holloway Ave.
Parking on 19th Avenue will be restricted to work zones during closures, but parking on side streets will remain available.
The rehabilitation project includes resurfacing the roadway, repairing potholes and upgrading traffic detection systems. Residents say the improvements are overdue.
Caltrans says last weekend's media coverage helped drivers plan ahead and even boosted BART ridership. The agency hopes for a similar shift this weekend.
Caltrans is urging drivers to avoid the area and use alternate routes.
Suggested detours include:
For Junipero Serra Boulevard traffic:
Right onto Junipero Serra Blvd.
Left on Sloat Blvd.
Right on Sunset Blvd.
Right on Lincoln Way
Left on 25th Ave.
Right on Martin Luther King Jr. Drive
Left onto 19th Avenue/SR1
For Brotherhood Way traffic:
Westbound on Brotherhood Way
Right on Lake Merced Blvd.
Right to Sunset Blvd.
Right on Lincoln Way
Left on 25th Ave.
Right on Martin Luther King Jr. Drive
Left onto 19th Avenue/SR1
For more information, click on the links below.
Project page: https://bit.ly/3PKYF2v
Caltrans QuickMap (realtime traffic): http://quickmap.dot.ca.gov/
511 Bay Area updates: https://twitter.com/511SFBay