It seems that last week's prediction was correct, as the SFMTA Board of Directors today approved the creation of a pilot program to allow Sunday double-parking on Dolores Street. Jerold Chinn, the transportation editor over at SFBay, was in attendance at the Tuesday afternoon hearing and tweeted out the news.
#SFMTA Board of Directors approve staff to develop a pilot regarding median parking on Dolores Street.
— Jerold Chinn (@Jerold_Chinn) August 16, 2016
What this pilot will look like exactly is unclear, as the program itself has not been finalized — rather, its creation has been approved. While this means we'll have to wait a bit longer to get the exact details, we do know a few things. First, it will make legal the currently illegal practice of churchgoers double-parking on the Mission's Dolores Street every Sunday morning.
It also means some regulation of the current state of affairs. "SFMTA staff consequently proposes to implement a 12-month pilot that clarifies where median parking is allowed and reduces the amount of parking on medians where it occurs in order to provide greater visibility and emergency vehicle access and limits the hours during which that parking occurs," reads the proposal.
In other words, drivers will likely see signage telling them where they can and cannot double-park, and specific spots along Dolores Street may be off-limits if they are deemed to be particularly troublesome by SFMTA officials.
This longstanding "parking for god" practice, as KQED News has called it, is deeply unpopular with those that actually live in the neighborhood — a factor which apparently didn't play into the Board's decision. However, it may turn out to be very popular with those driving to the Mission — after all, Sunday Dolores Park partiers now have a free place to park.
Previously: SFMTA 'Leans Toward' Formalizing Illegal Sunday Double Parking For Churchgoers
