Sacramento To Block Or Limit Traffic On Streets To Help Social-Distancing

Some streets will be blocked off or closed. Others will see limited traffic. It’s all part of the city of Sacramento’s “slow streets” plan, which could affect residential roads this month.

The goal is to create more room for social-distancing while outside, and the city has been working with community groups on its plan.

Deb Banks is with one of those groups, Sacramento Area Bicycle Advocates, and she’s been pushing for weeks to get it implemented.

"We need more space for people to be able to move around,” she said. “I get the sense that our window of opportunity is closing and that people are starting to get out more, and more, and more, and that's a problem."

Walk Sacramento also worked on the plan. Project manager Molly Wagner says the city's sidewalks aren't big enough for social distancing — if there's even a sidewalk at all.

“We have a huge opportunity to help people really re-envision our streets because there isn't traffic and there's a lot more people out there,” she said.

The city says it is moving forward with a pilot program and will convert a small number of residential roads in the coming weeks. The streets that will be blocked off have yet to be announced.

Oakland, the first city in California to implement a "slow streets" program, started small about a month ago and has gradually added space. It will have approximately 20 miles of the streets by Friday.

This story was updated to explain that Oakland will have 20 miles of "slow streets" this week, not Sacramento.