Double-Parking, Churches, and Cyclist Safety

"It is a practice that angers some cyclists and appears to run afoul of both the city’s transit-first policy and a new civil grand jury investigation that has made recommendations for easing the escalating tensions between drivers and cyclists.

Perhaps the best example of the conflict can be seen on Dolores Street at 16th Street. A religious crossroads, the intersection has three houses of worship: the Roman Catholic Mission Dolores Basilica, St. Matthew’s Lutheran Church and Congregation Sha’ar Zahav Synagogue. The street is one of the city’s loveliest promenades, with four lanes separated by a lush grassy median lined with palms.

But during services, the middle lanes on both sides of the road are filled with illegally parked cars, squeezing all traffic — cars and cyclists — into one narrow lane."

And for a city with cycling on the rise, some say that loose enforcement of these sorts of rules puts more people in danger.