Early US 101 in San Francisco

[Max Rockatansky]

Recently on a day trip to San Francisco I drove the original alignment of US 101 south from Hyde Street Pier to Daly City.  The original route of US 101 was on City maintained streets and used the following route south of Hyde Street Pier:

-  Hyde Street to Bay Street
-  Bay Street to Van Ness Avenue
-  Van Ness Avenue to Market Street
-  Market Street to Valencia Street
-  Valencia Street to Mission Street

In 1933 the Division of Highways took over maintenance of US 101 in San Francisco.  The Division of Highways made several alignment changes to US 101 to have it meet the Golden Gate Bridge but also pick up the flow of traffic from the San Francisco-Oakland Bay Bridge.  I put together a small blog series detailing the early alignments of US 101 in San Francisco before the opening of the Golden Gate Bridge.

https://www.gribblenation.org/2019/03/hyde-street-pier-and-original-surface.html

My photo set for the original alignment of US 101 in San Francisco can be found below:

https://flic.kr/s/aHsmAKA8oe

[TheStranger]

I actually drove Van Ness a bit yesterday so a very timely post!

Minor correction: the designation for the "traditional" US 101 routing along Alemany/San Jose/Mission Street/El Camino Real (of which most is currently Route 82) between 1937 and 1939 was Alternate US 101, rather than Bypass US 101.
 
Also, the 1933 reroute of US 101 away from the Mission/Valencia corridor is missing one minor detail, that being the segment of Bayshore Boulevard that connected Potrero Avenue with Alemany Boulevad.

480/101 junction: I recall several different plans for where that would have been, I always presumed most of them had the planned interchange somewhere near where the Van Ness/Lombard intersection is.

Central Freeway:  IIRC the only portion of the freeway actually earthquake-damaged (and removed right away) is from Fell Street to Turk Street.  The portion from Market Street to Fell Street was reopened in the 90s then closed in 2005 to make way for the modern Octavia Boulevard, with the segment from Duboce/Mission west to Market being rebuilt as a single-decker structure as part of that project.  East of Mission/Duboce, the rest of the Central Freeway remains US 101.

Mission Street:  The bridge over 280/Alemany I think predates 280 itself, existing as far back as 1926!  (Bing101 posted a link to this article a few weeks ago)
http://www.foundsf.org/index.php?title=Before_the_I-280_Freeway

[Max Rockatansky]

I actually drove Van Ness a bit yesterday so a very timely post!

Minor correction: the designation for the "traditional" US 101 routing along Alemany/San Jose/Mission Street/El Camino Real (of which most is currently Route 82) between 1937 and 1939 was Alternate US 101, rather than Bypass US 101.
 
Also, the 1933 reroute of US 101 away from the Mission/Valencia corridor is missing one minor detail, that being the segment of Bayshore Boulevard that connected Potrero Avenue with Alemany Boulevad.

480/101 junction: I recall several different plans for where that would have been, I always presumed most of them had the planned interchange somewhere near where the Van Ness/Lombard intersection is.

Central Freeway:  IIRC the only portion of the freeway actually earthquake-damaged (and removed right away) is from Fell Street to Turk Street.  The portion from Market Street to Fell Street was reopened in the 90s then closed in 2005 to make way for the modern Octavia Boulevard, with the segment from Duboce/Mission west to Market being rebuilt as a single-decker structure as part of that project.  East of Mission/Duboce, the rest of the Central Freeway remains US 101.

Mission Street:  The bridge over 280/Alemany I think predates 280 itself, existing as far back as 1926!  (Bing101 posted a link to this article a few weeks ago)
http://www.foundsf.org/index.php?title=Before_the_I-280_Freeway

Went back and clarified a couple things, funny how you can review these things about a million times and not spot errors that are obvious.  But the big was the Embarcadero Freeway was always planned at minimum for Lombard Street or points north of there.  I linked over the 1948 City Insert showing LRN 224 (which I should have known this from my own zen arcade to Freeway blog) blowing through Russian Hill of all places!  The Broadway Tunnel simply was meant to connect the Embarcadero Freeway to the Central Freeway.  I ran out of time this morning but I'm going to look at splicing the Viaduct over I-280 into the article when I get home tonight. 

[TheStranger]

One of the neat random thoughts that this blog post brings up are all the various spots where multiple US 101 historic alignments cross/diverge!  From SSF north to the Hyde Street Pier:


- El Camino Real/Chestnut Avenue in SSF (where Mission Road used to connect)
- Bayshore Freeway/Airport Boulevard in SSF (old Bypass US 101 underneath later Bypass US 101/current US 101 mainline)
- El Camino Real/Mission Road in Colma
- San Jose Avenue/Mission Street in Daly City
- Mission Street/Alemany Boulevard/I-280 in San Francisco, an interesting case where Mission crosses over 2 other former alignments of 101
- Bayshore Freeway/Bayshore Boulevard at the 3rd Street exit
- I-280/Alemany Boulevard just east of Mission Street - though unclear if this section of Alemany was completely rebuilt when the Southern Freeway was constructed
- Bayshore Freeway/Alemany Boulevard/Bayshore Boulevard (original site of 101/Bypass 101 split)
- the Alemany Maze (former Bypass US 101/mainline US 101 junction)
- Bayshore Freeway/Potrero Avenue/Bayshore Boulevard (the Cesar Chavez (Army) Street interchange)
- 10th Street/Central Freeway
- Valencia Street/Central Freeway
- Market Street/Van Ness Avenue
- Van Ness Avenue/Fell Street
- Van Ness Avenue/Turk and Golden Gate one-way couplet
- Van Ness Avenue/Bay Street

I also recall that for a year or two in the late 1930s, one map showed Route 1 using the US 101 surface routing between Fulton Street and the bridge - a temporary measure while the Presidio Tunnel was under construction.  Not sure if any signage of this was ever photographed though.

[Max Rockatansky]

I thought about trying to do a full alignment history but the sheer amount of information was way too much I was willing to put into a single blog series.

[TheStranger]

I thought about trying to do a full alignment history but the sheer amount of information was way too much I was willing to put into a single blog series.

Most definitely - I also think that that very first US 101 alignment along Mission/Valencia is of most interest, due to how built up the area has been for decades, and how much of it has never been supplanted by a freeway (unlike the Bayshore or Alemany portions).  For that matter, Valencia's current speed limit reduction really makes it hard to tell it was ever part of a major highway at all!

One bit of evidence of the former routing though is the former channelized right turn from southbound Valencia to southbound Mission, removed about a year or 2 ago and replaced with an expanded sidewalk.

[J3ebrules]

I’m new the forum, but I think this is the most appropriate place to post this neat little juxtaposition of the Golden Gate Bridge Vista Point - one from Google Street view today, and the other a picture my grandpa took of my grandma sometime in the 1970’s!

Today:

https://photos.app.goo.gl/hasddwVMhR414quX6

1970’s, with my mom’s first car, apparently (a Duster?)

https://photos.app.goo.gl/aAugoC3XUkZzakKa8

[Rothman]

My parents had a mid-1970s Duster.  They paid for an A/C option.  They said it was the worst car they ever had (they later bought a 1980 or '81 Chevette ).

I actually still remember the feel of the plastic or vinyl rear seat.

[Mapmikey]

One of the neat random thoughts that this blog post brings up are all the various spots where multiple US 101 historic alignments cross/diverge!  From SSF north to the Hyde Street Pier:


- El Camino Real/Chestnut Avenue in SSF (where Mission Road used to connect)
- Bayshore Freeway/Airport Boulevard in SSF (old Bypass US 101 underneath later Bypass US 101/current US 101 mainline)
- El Camino Real/Mission Road in Colma
- San Jose Avenue/Mission Street in Daly City
- Mission Street/Alemany Boulevard/I-280 in San Francisco, an interesting case where Mission crosses over 2 other former alignments of 101
- Bayshore Freeway/Bayshore Boulevard at the 3rd Street exit
- I-280/Alemany Boulevard just east of Mission Street - though unclear if this section of Alemany was completely rebuilt when the Southern Freeway was constructed
- Bayshore Freeway/Alemany Boulevard/Bayshore Boulevard (original site of 101/Bypass 101 split)
- the Alemany Maze (former Bypass US 101/mainline US 101 junction)
- Bayshore Freeway/Potrero Avenue/Bayshore Boulevard (the Cesar Chavez (Army) Street interchange)
- 10th Street/Central Freeway
- Valencia Street/Central Freeway
- Market Street/Van Ness Avenue
- Van Ness Avenue/Fell Street
- Van Ness Avenue/Turk and Golden Gate one-way couplet
- Van Ness Avenue/Bay Street

I also recall that for a year or two in the late 1930s, one map showed Route 1 using the US 101 surface routing between Fulton Street and the bridge - a temporary measure while the Presidio Tunnel was under construction.  Not sure if any signage of this was ever photographed though.

Here is a Dec 1937 photo showing only US 101 on Lombard at Divisadero - http://opensfhistory.org/Display/wnp4.1525.jpg

A map that can quickly get you photos of the Bay Area is available here - http://opensfhistory.org/maps/

There are some gems in here including this terrific photo showing the US 40-50 endpoint in 1962 - http://opensfhistory.org/Display/wnp25.2957.jpg

March 1937 showing US 101 shield Market/10th/Fell - http://opensfhistory.org/Display/wnp4.1446.jpg

[Max Rockatansky]

One of the neat random thoughts that this blog post brings up are all the various spots where multiple US 101 historic alignments cross/diverge!  From SSF north to the Hyde Street Pier:


- El Camino Real/Chestnut Avenue in SSF (where Mission Road used to connect)
- Bayshore Freeway/Airport Boulevard in SSF (old Bypass US 101 underneath later Bypass US 101/current US 101 mainline)
- El Camino Real/Mission Road in Colma
- San Jose Avenue/Mission Street in Daly City
- Mission Street/Alemany Boulevard/I-280 in San Francisco, an interesting case where Mission crosses over 2 other former alignments of 101
- Bayshore Freeway/Bayshore Boulevard at the 3rd Street exit
- I-280/Alemany Boulevard just east of Mission Street - though unclear if this section of Alemany was completely rebuilt when the Southern Freeway was constructed
- Bayshore Freeway/Alemany Boulevard/Bayshore Boulevard (original site of 101/Bypass 101 split)
- the Alemany Maze (former Bypass US 101/mainline US 101 junction)
- Bayshore Freeway/Potrero Avenue/Bayshore Boulevard (the Cesar Chavez (Army) Street interchange)
- 10th Street/Central Freeway
- Valencia Street/Central Freeway
- Market Street/Van Ness Avenue
- Van Ness Avenue/Fell Street
- Van Ness Avenue/Turk and Golden Gate one-way couplet
- Van Ness Avenue/Bay Street

I also recall that for a year or two in the late 1930s, one map showed Route 1 using the US 101 surface routing between Fulton Street and the bridge - a temporary measure while the Presidio Tunnel was under construction.  Not sure if any signage of this was ever photographed though.

Here is a Dec 1937 photo showing only US 101 on Lombard at Divisadero - http://opensfhistory.org/Display/wnp4.1525.jpg

A map that can quickly get you photos of the Bay Area is available here - http://opensfhistory.org/maps/

There are some gems in here including this terrific photo showing the US 40-50 endpoint in 1962 - http://opensfhistory.org/Display/wnp25.2957.jpg

March 1937 showing US 101 shield Market/10th/Fell - http://opensfhistory.org/Display/wnp4.1446.jpg

I have the modern location match for 1962 US 40-50 photo:

IMG_1441 by Max Rockatansky, on Flickr

[dbz77]

One of the neat random thoughts that this blog post brings up are all the various spots where multiple US 101 historic alignments cross/diverge!  From SSF north to the Hyde Street Pier:


- El Camino Real/Chestnut Avenue in SSF (where Mission Road used to connect)
- Bayshore Freeway/Airport Boulevard in SSF (old Bypass US 101 underneath later Bypass US 101/current US 101 mainline)
- El Camino Real/Mission Road in Colma
- San Jose Avenue/Mission Street in Daly City
- Mission Street/Alemany Boulevard/I-280 in San Francisco, an interesting case where Mission crosses over 2 other former alignments of 101
- Bayshore Freeway/Bayshore Boulevard at the 3rd Street exit
- I-280/Alemany Boulevard just east of Mission Street - though unclear if this section of Alemany was completely rebuilt when the Southern Freeway was constructed
- Bayshore Freeway/Alemany Boulevard/Bayshore Boulevard (original site of 101/Bypass 101 split)
- the Alemany Maze (former Bypass US 101/mainline US 101 junction)
- Bayshore Freeway/Potrero Avenue/Bayshore Boulevard (the Cesar Chavez (Army) Street interchange)
- 10th Street/Central Freeway
- Valencia Street/Central Freeway
- Market Street/Van Ness Avenue
- Van Ness Avenue/Fell Street
- Van Ness Avenue/Turk and Golden Gate one-way couplet
- Van Ness Avenue/Bay Street

I also recall that for a year or two in the late 1930s, one map showed Route 1 using the US 101 surface routing between Fulton Street and the bridge - a temporary measure while the Presidio Tunnel was under construction.  Not sure if any signage of this was ever photographed though.

Here is a Dec 1937 photo showing only US 101 on Lombard at Divisadero - http://opensfhistory.org/Display/wnp4.1525.jpg

A map that can quickly get you photos of the Bay Area is available here - http://opensfhistory.org/maps/

There are some gems in here including this terrific photo showing the US 40-50 endpoint in 1962 - http://opensfhistory.org/Display/wnp25.2957.jpg

March 1937 showing US 101 shield Market/10th/Fell - http://opensfhistory.org/Display/wnp4.1446.jpg

I have the modern location match for 1962 US 40-50 photo:

IMG_1441 by Max Rockatansky, on Flickr

Interesting.

It seems US 50 bring extended along the route of US 40, only to terminate at that interchange, was a little redundant.

[Max Rockatansky]

^^^

But it was also the tact of the times.  US Routes often were co-signed to mutual terminus points across the country.  Before the era of Interstates and ease of navigation via GPS following a singular route across the county likely was incredibly useful. 

[TheStranger]

^^^

But it was also the tact of the times.  US Routes often were co-signed to mutual terminus points across the country.  Before the era of Interstates and ease of navigation via GPS following a singular route across the county likely was incredibly useful. 

The old 60/70/99 concurrency in LA illustrates this a ton too (with 60/70 essentially ending at US 101 at the San Bernardino Split while 99 continued on in both the northbound and eastbound directions)!

Really the problem I've always had with the 50 routing to SF is how impractical using it to get from SF to Sacramento was (south to Stockton, south to Lathrop, west to Tracy/Altamont Pass, then north from Castro Valley to the MacArthur Maze)

Route 108 using Route 132 to end at Route 99 might be a modern example of this in California, as is Route 103 following a mile of Route 47 to end at the 47/710 split.  (IMO, Route 99 could follow old US 99E along Route 36 to end at I-5 given the route's importance; I recall someone mentioned to me years ago that a 99 expressway bypass of Red Bluff directly linking to I-5 south of town was considered at one point)

[Max Rockatansky]

^^^

But it was also the tact of the times.  US Routes often were co-signed to mutual terminus points across the country.  Before the era of Interstates and ease of navigation via GPS following a singular route across the county likely was incredibly useful. 

The old 60/70/99 concurrency in LA illustrates this a ton too (with 60/70 essentially ending at US 101 at the San Bernardino Split while 99 continued on in both the northbound and eastbound directions)!

Really the problem I've always had with the 50 routing to SF is how impractical using it to get from SF to Sacramento was (south to Stockton, south to Lathrop, west to Tracy/Altamont Pass, then north from Castro Valley to the MacArthur Maze)

Route 108 using Route 132 to end at Route 99 might be a modern example of this in California, as is Route 103 following a mile of Route 47 to end at the 47/710 split.  (IMO, Route 99 could follow old US 99E along Route 36 to end at I-5 given the route's importance; I recall someone mentioned to me years ago that a 99 expressway bypass of Red Bluff directly linking to I-5 south of town was considered at one point)

Even US 6 did the same thing as US 50.  It took a wild southern jog just to end co-signed along US 101A.  At minimum the terrain generally dictated the route that US 6 and US 50 could take.  Really US 101E would have been a better fit for the Bay Area, especially as time progressed and the San Rafael Bridge was built.  Regarding Altamont Pass it was also subject to the same weirdness with the saga of I-5.  Personally I think an elongated US 99W would have been perfect for Altamont Pass provided it ended up skipping Sacramento altogether and picked up the route signed in field at Davis. 

[Northcoast707]

The photo of Max Rockatansky's is the northern segment of what is called colloquially "Hospital Curve," before it enters the viaduct section of the freeway called "San Francisco Skyway."  US 101, from Army St. to the on/offramps at Bryant St. was opened on Oct. 1, 1953 and almost from the start, had problems with vehicular accidents - a situation that continues today.

[kkt]

^^^

But it was also the tact of the times.  US Routes often were co-signed to mutual terminus points across the country.  Before the era of Interstates and ease of navigation via GPS following a singular route across the county likely was incredibly useful. 

The old 60/70/99 concurrency in LA illustrates this a ton too (with 60/70 essentially ending at US 101 at the San Bernardino Split while 99 continued on in both the northbound and eastbound directions)!

Really the problem I've always had with the 50 routing to SF is how impractical using it to get from SF to Sacramento was (south to Stockton, south to Lathrop, west to Tracy/Altamont Pass, then north from Castro Valley to the MacArthur Maze)

Route 108 using Route 132 to end at Route 99 might be a modern example of this in California, as is Route 103 following a mile of Route 47 to end at the 47/710 split.  (IMO, Route 99 could follow old US 99E along Route 36 to end at I-5 given the route's importance; I recall someone mentioned to me years ago that a 99 expressway bypass of Red Bluff directly linking to I-5 south of town was considered at one point)

The US 50 route from Sacramento to Oakland had no bridges or tolls.

[sparker]

^^^

But it was also the tact of the times.  US Routes often were co-signed to mutual terminus points across the country.  Before the era of Interstates and ease of navigation via GPS following a singular route across the county likely was incredibly useful. 

The old 60/70/99 concurrency in LA illustrates this a ton too (with 60/70 essentially ending at US 101 at the San Bernardino Split while 99 continued on in both the northbound and eastbound directions)!

Really the problem I've always had with the 50 routing to SF is how impractical using it to get from SF to Sacramento was (south to Stockton, south to Lathrop, west to Tracy/Altamont Pass, then north from Castro Valley to the MacArthur Maze)

Route 108 using Route 132 to end at Route 99 might be a modern example of this in California, as is Route 103 following a mile of Route 47 to end at the 47/710 split.  (IMO, Route 99 could follow old US 99E along Route 36 to end at I-5 given the route's importance; I recall someone mentioned to me years ago that a 99 expressway bypass of Red Bluff directly linking to I-5 south of town was considered at one point)

The US 50 route from Sacramento to Oakland had no bridges or tolls.

It also roughly traced the original throughput (no ferries) Central Pacific (later SP) RR route from Sacramento to the port at Oakland; the direct route "California Pacific" line through Davis and Suisun City utilized a ferry service from Benicia to Port Costa until the Benicia-Martinez drawbridge was built in 1930. 

Also, the planned Red Bluff CA 99 cutoff -- eliminated from the Freeway & Expressway system in 1994 along with several other planned facilities -- diverged from the historic/current CA 99 alignment near Los Molinos, curving northwest around Gerber and terminating at I-5 west of Proberta.  This projected route can be seen on state maps as the usual Caltrans series of small circles on maps published prior to the deletion.

[Max Rockatansky]

^^^

But it was also the tact of the times.  US Routes often were co-signed to mutual terminus points across the country.  Before the era of Interstates and ease of navigation via GPS following a singular route across the county likely was incredibly useful. 

The old 60/70/99 concurrency in LA illustrates this a ton too (with 60/70 essentially ending at US 101 at the San Bernardino Split while 99 continued on in both the northbound and eastbound directions)!

Really the problem I've always had with the 50 routing to SF is how impractical using it to get from SF to Sacramento was (south to Stockton, south to Lathrop, west to Tracy/Altamont Pass, then north from Castro Valley to the MacArthur Maze)

Route 108 using Route 132 to end at Route 99 might be a modern example of this in California, as is Route 103 following a mile of Route 47 to end at the 47/710 split.  (IMO, Route 99 could follow old US 99E along Route 36 to end at I-5 given the route's importance; I recall someone mentioned to me years ago that a 99 expressway bypass of Red Bluff directly linking to I-5 south of town was considered at one point)

The US 50 route from Sacramento to Oakland had no bridges or tolls.

It also roughly traced the original throughput (no ferries) Central Pacific (later SP) RR route from Sacramento to the port at Oakland; the direct route "California Pacific" line through Davis and Suisun City utilized a ferry service from Benicia to Port Costa until the Benicia-Martinez drawbridge was built in 1930. 

Also, the planned Red Bluff CA 99 cutoff -- eliminated from the Freeway & Expressway system in 1994 along with several other planned facilities -- diverged from the historic/current CA 99 alignment near Los Molinos, curving northwest around Gerber and terminating at I-5 west of Proberta.  This projected route can be seen on state maps as the usual Caltrans series of small circles on maps published prior to the deletion.

That lack of bridges and tolls was a huge advantage that the Lincoln Highway in addition to US 48 had over US 40.  US 40 required a passage on the Benicia-Martinez Ferry and a really haggard jog west on Carquinez Scenic Drive.  To that end it makes total sense that the route over Altamont Pass was ultimately incorporated into the much more important US 50.  The Sacramento-Stockton multiplex of US 50/US 99 in my opinion was minor given the potential utility for the long distance traveler for getting the former to Oakland via Altamont Pass.