| Van Ness Avenue |
| Maintained by S.F. D.P.W. |
| South end: |
Cesar Chavez (Army Street) |
Major
junctions: |
 US 101 |
| North end: |
McDowell Avenue |
|
|
Intersection of Van Ness Avenue and Clay Street.
Van Ness Avenue (originally known as Marlette Street[1]) is a north-south arterial thoroughfare in San Francisco, California that cuts through Downtown from the Central Freeway towards the northern section of the city. It begins at Market Street near Civic Center, San Francisco, extending to the north and ends at Fort Mason. One of the most striking landmarks along the way is the San Francisco City Hall, the city's Opera House and the Davies Symphony Hall. To the south after crossing Market Street, Van Ness Avenue becomes South Van Ness Avenue and continues south through the city's South of Market and Mission districts until it ends at Cesar Chavez Street. The part of the street between Lombard Street and Market Street is designated as US 101.[2] This street was named in honor of Mayor James Van Ness.[1][3]
History
Originally a quiet residential neighborhood of mansions, the street was used as a firebreak by the US Army during the 1906 Earthquake and Fire that destroyed most of San Francisco. Many of the buildings were dynamited along the street by soldiers in an ultimately successful attempt to keep the firestorm from spreading west to the entire city. Following the quake, Van Ness served as the temporary commercial center and main thoroughfare of San Francisco, as it ultimately evolved into a busy commercial district in its own right, attracting many car dealerships that exist to this day as the majority of the city's car and scooter dealership line the street. It still remains a generally upscale area with large and grand apartment buildings, restaurants, and movie theaters.
Bus Rapid Transit
Major intersections
The entire route is in San Francisco, San Francisco County.
References
This entry is from Wikipedia, the leading user-contributed encyclopedia. It may not have been reviewed by professional editors (see full disclaimer)
US 101 south (Central Freeway) to I-80 east – San Jose
