PRESS ADVISORY

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE:                                                                                                                                                                                    

CONTACT: 

Wednesday, March 30, 2011

Gloria Chan (415) 554-6926      

                                                             

VOLUNTEERS HIT THE GROUND TO CONDUCT STUDY FOR BETTER MARKET STREET PROJECT

More than 40 volunteers to conduct Public Life, Public Space Study

SAN FRANCISCO, CA – In an effort to quantify and explore the many uses of Market Street,     more than 40 volunteers will be conducting visual tallies on pedestrian, bicycle, and other   stationary activity uses along this corridor between Octavia Boulevard and The Embarcadero. Volunteers will be assigned to more than 30 locations and public plazas along Market Street and on adjacent streets from 8am-10pm on Saturday, April 2 as part of a Public Life, Public Space Study for the Better Market Street Project. All volunteers will be wearing t-shirts bearing the Better Market Street logo. This effort will compliment the first study which began on Thursday, March 10.

The volunteers were trained by urban planners and architects on the methodology which uses empirical surveys and spatial mapping of how public spaces are used. The methodology was created and refined by Gehl Architects, from Copenhagen Denmark, and has been employed in dozens of cities worldwide over the past 40 years. The goal of the study is to help the Better Market Street Project team learn more about the volume and types of activities that make up this street in order to begin the strategic planning and visioning process.

The Better Market Street Project aims to revitalize Market Street from Octavia Boulevard to The Embarcadero and re-establish the street as the premier cultural, civic and economic center of San Francisco and the Bay Area. The new design should create a comfortable, universally accessible, sustainable, and enjoyable place that attracts more people on foot, bicycle and public transit to visit shops, adjacent neighborhoods and area attractions. The team consists of the Department of Public Works, the Planning Department, the San Francisco Municipal Transportation Agency, the San Francisco County Transportation Authority, and the San Francisco Public Utilities Commission. For more information, visit www.bettermarketstreetsf.org



WHAT:           Volunteers stationed at more than 30 locations to conduct and study pedestrian, bicycle and stationary activity counts on Market Street

WHEN:           Saturday, April 2— 8 am to 10 pm

WHERE:        Market Street, from Octavia Boulevard and The Embarcadero

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