The morning call. [volume] (San Francisco [Calif.]) 1878-1895, 1894-08-26
DEVIsADER0 STREET DOOMED
Electricians to Run Over the
Level Blocks.
CARRIAGES TO Go ELSEWHERE.
The Market Street Company Pre-
pairing to Tear Up the Smooth
Pavement for a Roadbed.

The Market-street Railway Company is
preparing to tear up the only driveway to
Golden Gate Park and intrude Its poles
and wires and electrician tracks in the
way of carriages. Bituminous pavement
will be replaced with basalt blocks or
cObbIesrones and the street will become
dangerous to drive upon.
Nothing can now be done to stop this
encroachment on a street that ought to
have been dedicated, at least for several
blocks. as a boulevard for carriages ex-
clusively. For the Market-street Company
stole march on the people in Decem Der,
1892, and so secured a franchise from the
last Board of Supervisors for cross-town
and other streets which had not been
already gobbled up. Supervisors Burling,
= Curtis. Aver, Carnes. Coffee, Heyer, Hunt,
raber and Wilkins voted in favor of the
franchise and Ebert and Antiques opposed
the proposition, voting in the negative.
So it may be seen that this was one OF
the job franchises that were railroaded
through the last Board of Supervisors just
prior 10 their going out of Office.
The franchise, among other specifica-
tiOns, includes an electric line along Devils
adero street fr00 the bay to Castro and
Market. But only portion of this will be
ket-street Com pany to build more than
over a few blocks, which, by the way, are
part of the boulevard to Golden Gate
Park. The line to Castro street and over
to North Beach is ansafter consideration.
1t will be built when the railroad CON-
pany pleases, as operating portion of the
road will save the franchise for genera
ton 10 come. That part, however, against
which a protest is being made is to he con-
structed at once. It lies between Golden
Gate avenue and Grove street. which is the
only level roadway leading from Golden
Gate avenue to the park panhandle. Quite
recently this stretch of DevisaderO street
was paved with bi tumeD. and Grove street
as far as Baker ana thence to the pam
handle entrance were likewise covered
with the same pleasant paving. Then the
asphaitnm driveway for carriages eX-
- tended from Market and Taylor streets TO
tAe park. The one feasible outlet from
Golden Gate avenue is DevisaderO street.
which avoids steep grades, and it has long
been used as such by people riding 10 the
park Saturday afternoons the few blocks
on D6vlSadero are literally crowded with
carriages of all kinds, and on Sundays
traffic is so dense in that part of town that
fast driving is always attended with con-
siderable danger. Indeed every day in
the week there is an endless stream of
vehicles passing either way along those
level blocks. Drivers so long distances
out of the way TO cross town or avoid hills
by going over DeyisadeTO street.
But all this will be changed. The level
thoroughfare is threatened, and teams will
be driven off to climb hills in preference to
taking risks with rushing electric cars.
1t is understood that a service of three
minutes will be given on the electric line
which is to be changed from Scott street to
Devisadero. This would cause cars to
pass given point every minute and a
half, and so there would be continual dan
Of npllf pin fha l. ~
cObbles between will destroy the street as
a carriage road.
Protests were made by owners of teams
who amuse themselves by driving 10 the
park and also by pFoperty-owners Oh
Devisadero street, who aid not like to see
their real estate injured. Every attempt
to grab DeVisadero street was met with a
vigorous protest. but objections proved
futile when the Supervisors undertook to
crafty wishes Of the Southern Pacific.