Anyone who has ever walked across the intersection of Mission Street and Cesar Chavez knows how harrowing it is. Mission Street seems to balloon in width as it heads south toward Daly City. Cesar Chavez acts as a speedway for cars heading to two freeways: 101 and 280. It’s not surprising that the corner where the two streets meet was number seven on the list of “Highest collision total intersections . . . resulting in injury” in the San Francisco 2005 Collision Report that the Department of Parking and Traffic (DPT) released in July.Neighbors are not happy. C.C. Puede, or Cesar Chavez, Yes We Can!, a coalition of residents, merchants, and bicycle and pedestrian safety advocates, has called for a demonstration to highlight problems at the corner of Cesar Chavez and Mission and to press the city for solutions. The rally will take place at noon on Wednesday, September 27, and feature a short program of speakers followed by mass pedestrian crossings between all four corners. Organizers hope children, dogs, and politicians will find safety in numbers for a change.Sidewalks at the corner have been cut back so severely over the years that turning cars hardly have to slow down. Drivers heading north on Mission, for instance, can whip right onto Cesar Chavez toward the 101 freeway ramps with barely a touch of the brake. Pedestrians crossing on the green light at the same time have to keep their eyes peeled and their feet ready. Exacerbating this problem is a quirk in the curb cut on the north side where Capp Street curves into the corner. The placement of the curb cut dumps wheelchair users and stroller pushers smack into a traffic lane.Plans are in the works to address this and other problems. A workshop held at the Bernal Gateway Apartments in July discussed extending the Capp Street sidewalk, so the curb cut would lead to the crosswalk. Proposals to extend the sidewalk out at all four corners are also making their way through the DPT bureaucracy. This would reduce the long distances pedestrians have to cross and square off the corners so cars would have to slow down. C.C. Puede is working to change the entire length of Cesar Chavez from a funnel for cars to a neighborhood street that better reflects the values of the man it was named after. It currently functions as a barrier between the Mission and Bernal Heights and, to the east, between Potrero Hill and Bayview. The group’s vision includes reducing the number of car traffic lanes between Guerrero and the 101 freeway maze from six to four and adding left-turn pockets, bike lanes, and widened sidewalks and/or medians. Adding trees and other greenery to cut down on noise pollution and soften the freeway-like appearance is an integral part of the plan. The group also hopes to address the fact that a creek runs below Cesar Chavez, which floods with heavy winter rains in part because it’s been sealed in pavement where nature placed water.The corner where the demonstration will be held is a busy public transportation hub where numerous Mission Street bus lines cross routes for the #27-Bryant and #12-Folsom. Riders make up much of the pedestrian traffic in the area. Day laborers are also a large presence, and a representative of the Day Labor Program is scheduled to speak at the September 27 rally. Workers have been hit by cars in the past, and the program is an important element of C.C. Puede’s outreach. ♦Everyone is encouraged to come to the Sept. 27 rally at noon. For more information, contact Chana Sourivong at 602-0557 or lotchana@senioractionnetwork.org. The DPT report is available online at http://sfgov.org./site/uploadedfiles/dpt/Collision_report_2005.pdf.

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