San Francisco Mayor Daniel Lurie announced Thursday that Waymo's self-driving taxis will soon be allowed on Market Street in the financial district.  

It's a roughly two-mile stretch that has been closed to most traffic since 2020. It runs from Main Street in the Embarcadero to 10th Street and was championed by safety advocates.

The executive director of the San Francisco Bike Coalition, Christopher White, says he wasn't too happy when he heard Lurie's announcement.

"This we think sends things in the complete wrong direction," White said.

White, along with representatives from Walk SF, Kid Safe SF and SF Transit Riders, worry allowing Waymo onto Market Street will just add to safety concerns.

"Market Street before it was car-free was also the most dangerous street in San Francisco and since cars were taken off it injury crashes have dropped by 40%, which is huge," White said.

White said he's worried the autonomous vehicles could create roadblocks and traffic jams for folks riding Muni buses and trains.

"It's obvious from our experience here in San Francisco that it's very easy for Waymos to brick and when they do it's just going to create confusion, unsafe conditions. We don't know how it would affect emergency response. We're concerned about that as well," White said.

In his announcement, Lurie said Waymo would complement the existing transportation options on Market Street and help bring more people into the area, supporting local businesses and helping to revitalize the city's downtown.

Carlos Hernandez is the cofounder of Coffee Bodega off Market, saying he is all for having Waymo on the street.

"Bringing Waymo down to Market will bring more foot traffic onto the Market Street, especially in the downtown area where we've been struggling a lot to see people return to work. And this could maybe promote people to come back to work," Hernandez said.

White is skeptical as he doesn't believe more cars will mean more people and says the city should focus on making Market Street a can't-miss destination.

That's what he believes will really bring people back.

"Having festivals, having night markets. I think creating entertainment zones which the mayor recently did is a great idea. Giving people reasons to go to Market Street is the thing that's going to bring Market Street back to life. It's not cars," White said.