A WINDING ROAD TO ANNOYING TOURIST THRONGS
Lombard Street, the scenic San Francisco thoroughfare known as the “crookedest street in the world,” has become so thronged with gawkers that residents say it feels more like an overcrowded amusement park than a residential road. San Franciscans appear to have had about enough.
THE HISTORY
Residents built the hairpin turns on the red brick road in 1922 because its 27-degree grade was too steep for the era’s cars to climb. Neighbours added the lush gardens, filled with hydrangeas and roses, 30 years later. The sweeping views and the fact that a cable car stops at the top of the street contributed to its popularity. Its worldwide fame only increased after it was featured in movies and commercials.
THE CROWDS
Sightseers have visited the landmark road for decades, but in the past four or five years, they have flooded it. In the summer months, an estimated 6,000 people a day visit the street. “There have been days when you have 250 people at the bottom of the street taking pictures and hundreds of people up and down the sidewalks and another hundred at the top,” said Greg Brundage, who has lived on the hilly street for 20 years. “It’s a mob scene.”
Tour buses drop off tourists at the top. Cars waiting to drive down the 600-footlong street often stretch back for three blocks, clogging the Russian Hill neighbourhood, residents said.
THE SOLUTIONS
City transit leaders are considering charging a toll, requiring reservations, adding parking-control officers and encouraging visitors to reach the single-lane street on foot or by cable car.
THE RESIDENTS
Brundage said his wife has been attacked twice after honking at people standing on her driveway, one of the few flat areas about halfway down the street. He’s had to chase away people who climb to his roof for a better photograph. Added Lombard resident Jim Hickman: “I’m a tourist, too, and I understand people want to enjoy the place, but we’re not the Eiffel Tower.”
THE TOURIST
Sophie Arnoux, who was visiting from southern France with her family, said they first drove down the street, then parked their car and went back on foot to walk down the sidewalk. “It’s one of the most beautiful streets in the world,” Arnoux said. “It’s a must-see, like Champs Élysées.” Asked if she would live along the street, she said, “No way!” “It’s a beautiful place, but there are too many people and lots of cars,” she said. “It would be annoying to live here.”