Trouble is stirring in San Francisco's adorable NOPA district. It seems some residents are none too thrilled with the "large electronic traffic information signs" planned for Oak and Fell Streets. The city wants to install these big electronic signs near Divisadero, directing drivers to parking garages ans such, and the neighborhood's residents don't like it because, obviously, they're ugly.

There's also some fuss over said signs being a distraction to drivers, that it might hinder them from avoiding cyclists, but drivers have been maneuvering though city streets laced with flashy signs for decades now. We can't imagine this would be a huge problem. (Nobody in SF ever wants to say that they want something torn down because it's ugly. In SF everyone has to pretend that they're only concerned about The Greater Good, which is unfortunate because aesthetic discomfort is, most of the time, a legitimate reason to oppose anything.) Then again, the signs aren't really that necessary.

According to North Panhandle Neighborhood Association President Kevin Rafter, "We believe that this large, ugly, electronic sign will actually increase safety hazards on Fell Street because it will require drivers to look up and read the signs. In addition, it will encourage more traffic on these streets and degrade from the streetscape improvements the City and our neighborhood are trying to implement in our community."

Residents are urging MTA to relocate the signs to the freeway.