San Francisco Freeway Network Management Study

Freeway Corridor Management Study Phase 1 and 2

Following the recommendation for a freeway management in the 2013 San Francisco Transportation Plan, the Transportation Authority completed the Freeway Corridor Management Study (PDF) in November 2018 which included analysis of four managed lanes options:

• No Build where the freeway configuration remains as it is today.
• High Occupancy Vehicle (HOV) 2+, or carpool, with a two-person minimum requirement.
• High Occupancy Vehicle (HOV) 3+, or carpool, with a three-person minimum requirement.
• Express Lane, or High occupancy toll (HOT) 3+, with a three-person minimum carpool requirement for use of the lane or paid access to the lane for vehicles with less than 3 people.

A recommendation of the Freeway Corridor Management Study was to further study equity impacts of managed lanes and develop programs to address the impacts.

Caltrans Project Study Report for US 101 Corridor Managed Lanes

Following the FCMS, the Transportation Authority began the 101/280 Express Lanes and Bus Project “Project Study Report” process with Caltrans, which focused on implementation of the HOT3+ option. The PSR identified alternatives to implement the HOT3+ option but did not provide a recommendation.

Caltrans approved the PSR for the 101/280 Express Lanes and Bus Project in October 2019, and project work was anticipated to move into the environmental clearance phase in 2021. 

Metropolitan Transportation Commission Managed Lanes Strategic Plan, US 101 Mobility Action Plan (Joint effort between San Francisco, San Mateo, Santa Clara, Caltrans, and TransForm)

During this time, the MTC adopted its Managed Lanes Strategic Plan (PDF) in April 2021 that included a facility for 101/280 in San Francisco, and the Transportation Authority conducted pre-environmental scoping work for high occupancy toll 3+ and the high occupancy vehicle 3+ lane option, as part of a comprehensive program package. 

In November 2019, the Transportation Authority Board appropriated $4.1 million in Prop K to partially fund the environmental planning phase for 101/280 Express Lanes and Bus Project. In November 2020, Transportation Authority staff removed the consideration of an express lane option from the scope based on feedback from the Transportation Authority Board, leaving carpool and bus lanes as the focus of the study.

During this time, San Francisco, San Mateo, Santa Clara county transportation agencies together with Caltrans and TransForm also collaborated on a U.S. 101 Mobility Action Plan, which was completed in Spring 2021, and identifies near-term policies, programs, and technological solutions to reduce drive alone trips along the U.S. 101 corridor. 

Transportation Authority Freeway Management Hearing and 101-280 Carpool and Bus Lanes Study

In March 2023, Transportation Authority staff presented an overview of Bay Area freeway pricing and management (PDF) to the Board. Following this presentation, the Board agreed that staff should study priced managed lanes on San Francisco Freeways. The 101/280 Study focusing on Northbound 101/280 Carpool and Bus Study also commenced at this time. A future planned Southbound 101/280 Carpool and Bus Study and full facility (Northbound and Southbound) U.S. 101/I280 Express Lane Study was not undertaken.

Starting in 2022, Transportation Authority staff began conducting analyses for the Part 1: U.S. 101/I-280 northbound direction of travel. In November 2023, the Transportation Authority initiated a round of outreach for the Northbound I-280 Transit and Carpool Lane Study. This work focused on two main transit/carpool lane design options under consideration for the less than one mile segment at the northern terminus of I-280 North from the 18th Street overcrossing to King/5th Streets:

• Option 1 converted the left-side traffic lane from a general purpose lane to a transit/carpool use only
• Option 2 converted  the shoulder to a transit/carpool lane via striping and not physical widening

The scope also considered the possibility of extending either of the above configurations onto King Street to further prioritize public transit and carpools as they continue on local streets.

Some issues that community members raised during these outreach meetings include:

• The potential to increase delay for general traffic on the freeway
• The potential to generate more traffic in the area or cause traffic to divert to other exits (e.g. 6th Street) or surface street routes
• The potential impacts of the project on pedestrian safety and neighborhood livability
• The challenge of enforcing transit/carpool lane violations
• The benefits to transit riders and carpools and potential to attract new riders/carpoolers resulting in moving people more efficiently through the corridor

Transportation Authority Hearing on MTC’s Next Generation Bay Area Freeways Study

At the April 23, 2024 meeting of the Transportation Authority Board, MTC staff presented an update on their ongoing Next Generation Bay Area Freeways Study. The Next Generation Bay Area Freeways Study is an early and immediate action in response to Plan Bay Area 2050's Strategy T5, which called for the implementation of per-mile tolling on congested freeways with transit alternatives in support of a reduction in regional vehicle miles traveled and resultant greenhouse gas emissions to meet the region's state-mandated greenhouse gas reduction targets. The Next Generation Bay Area Freeways Study is exploring whether there are equitable as well as technically and politically feasible pathways towards implementing Strategy T5 in the medium to long term. Transportation Authority staff recognize that all-lane tolling is a bold, new strategy that was added out of necessity to close the greenhouse gas reduction gaps in Plan Bay Area 2050.

Transportation Authority staff returned in spring 2024 to request funding for the San Francisco Freeway Management Study, which the Board approved at its July 2024 meeting.

Reports and Documents

• 101 Mobility Action Plan website

• Final Report: Freeway Corridor Management Study, 2018 (PDF)