A rash of recent sideshows in the tony neighborhood of Pacific Heights has led the city to install speed bumps to prevent the motor mayhem at Divisadero and California streets.
We thought it was unusual last month when a large sideshow broke out at Van Ness Avenue and Pine Street, not far from the exclusive neighborhood of Pacific Heights. Turns out it was not that unusual. SFGate reported there was a March sideshow at Divisadero and California streets, which is well within Pacific Heights, and a Chronicle report says that particular intersection has seen “disruptive car sideshows that have irritated neighbors for more than two years.”
Van Ness / Pine Sideshow
byu/bbbuongiorno insanfrancisco
That observation comes in a Chronicle report noting that the city has now installed speed bumps in the middle of the intersection at Divisadero and California streets, a report whose accompanying photo shows a hefty volume of donut tire-tracks laid down at that very corner. The speed bumps were apparently installed this past Tuesday morning, and they may not affect regular drivers as they're meant to just keep donut-spinning from being feasible.
“The important thing is that there was action taken,” nearby resident Sally Fay told the Chronicle. “Enough is enough.”
Yet this is not “enough” for mayoral candidate and District 11 Supervisor Ahsha Safia, who wrote the 2020 legislation saying SFPD could impound cars that participated in sideshows, and also created an SFPD sideshow abatement unit. Safai’s follow-up request to that legislation found that only the police department had impounded six sideshow participant cars in 2023, and only five thus far in 2024.
“The Police Department has not done enough,” Safai told the Chronicle. “We have a sideshow abatement unit for a reason. It should be a priority. All of these things add up.”
The Chronicle cites SF.gov data showing there were 52 cases of so-called “stunt driving” reported in 2023, 24 so far in 2024, and 11 in June 2024 alone.
Related: There Was a Saturday Sideshow On Van Ness Avenue, In the Middle of SF [SFist]
Image: Quirky-Pangolin-905 via Reddit
