The backbone of San Francisco is our horizontal infrastructure; the streets, water, power, and sewer systems that make living in a city possible. Many of these systems function invisibly to residents. They run underground, are walked over, and are turned on with the flick of a switch or the twist of a faucet. The City invests in these systems to provide basic services; and these investments also contribute to City-wide goals of environmental sustainability, pedestrian safety, and a more beautiful and livable city.

It is imperative that the City maintain these assets in a state of good repair given the essential nature of these systems. Proactive maintenance ensures the steady provision of services and is less costly than fixing problems that have degraded beyond repair. High quality service provision is key for advancing equity as utility disruptions or degraded street conditions have disproportionate impacts on low-income people, communities of color, and people with disabilities.

Overview

Programs addressed in this chapter are delivered by San Francisco Public Works (PW) and the San Francisco Public Utilities Commission (SFPUC). Among the key programs implemented by PW are Street Resurfacing, Sidewalk Repair, and Street Tree Maintenance. SFPUC provides San Francisco with water, power, and wastewater systems, implementing multi-billion-dollar programs designed
to prolong the life of these assets. Together, these two agencies deliver tangible results that affect the lives of every San Franciscan.

Public Works Streets and Rights-of-Way

Since the launch of the 2011 Road Repaving and Street Safety Bond Program, the City has achieved notable progress in improving street conditions. The final bond sale for this $248 million program was completed in spring 2016, funding essential street resurfacing, streetscape, curb ramp, bikeway and traffic signal upgrades. Since then, continued investment from the General Fund, State funding from the Road Repair and Accountability Act of 2017 (SB1), and other sources have supported ongoing improvements.

In 2020, voters reaffirmed their commitment to public infrastructure by approving the Health and Recovery General Obligation Bond, allocating an additional $41.5 million for improvements to the public right of way. Additionally, General Fund debt has been issued in the interim to address short-term funding gaps. However, stable and long-term sources of funding remain critical to sustaining these improvements.

San Francisco’s Pavement Condition Index (PCI) currently stands at 75, the highest rating among large Bay Area cities and a reflection of the City's continued investment in enhancing street quality. These improvements are closely aligned with the ongoing Vision Zero SF initiative, which seeks to eliminate traffic fatalities and critical injuries, now with a focus on advancing key safety measures. Investments in repaving streets, renewing crosswalk and street markings, and upgrading traffic infrastructure contribute directly to safer conditions for everyone – drivers, bicyclists and pedestrians. Additionally, the City remains committed to accessibility by improving curb ramps, sidewalks, street crossings, and pathways to improve safe travel for people with disabilities.

Public Utilities Commission

The SFPUC provides and distributes water to 2.6 million customers, treats wastewater, and supplies electric power to operate Muni streetcars and electric buses, street and traffic lights, and municipal buildings. The SFPUC includes three utility enterprises: Water, Wastewater, and Power.

The Water Enterprise consists of over 389 miles of pipeline, over 74 miles of tunnels, 11 reservoirs, five pump stations, three water treatment plants, and nine groundwater wells and treatment facilities located outside of the city (the “Regional Water System”), and over 1,235 miles of pipeline, 11 reservoirs, eight storage tanks, 22 pump stations, seven hydropneumatic stations, and six groundwater wells and treatment facilities located within city limits (the “In-City Distribution System”).

The Water Enterprise is responsible for the distribution of high-quality water to its customers in San Francisco and other Bay Area communities. Hetch Hetchy watershed, located in Yosemite National Park, provides approximately 85% of San Francisco’s total water supply, with the remaining 15% produced by the Alameda and Peninsula watersheds, regional and local groundwater supplies, and recycled water. The drinking water provided is among the purest in the world; the system for delivering that water is almost entirely gravity fed, requiring almost no fossil fuel consumption to move water from the mountains to the tap. The Water Enterprise operates, maintains, and improves water and power facilities, smaller dams and reservoirs, water transmission systems, power generation facilities, and power transmission assets.

The Wastewater Enterprise operates and maintains the City's water pollution control plants, pumping stations, and collection system to protect public health and the environment. It also maintains the 900-mile-long combined sewer system and 27 pump stations that collect sewage and storm water, moving wastewater to treatment plants for eventual discharge into the San Francisco Bay and the Pacific Ocean. The SFPUC is undertaking a Sewer System Improvement Program (SSIP) to modernize its systems and help meet its level of service goals. The SSIP is expected to take place over the next 20 years.

The Power Enterprise is responsible for providing reliable, clean, high-quality electric energy to the city. The Power Enterprise’s 100% greenhouse gas-free electric supply portfolio for Hetch Hetchy Power consists of hydroelectric power from three power plants in the Sierra Nevada mountains, solar power generated at SFPUC and other City facilities, and bio-methane power produced at SFPUC wastewater treatment facilities. CleanPowerSF serves more than 380,000 customer accounts and provides San Francisco with an electricity supply from its default “Green” product that is at least 50% California State-eligible renewable energy and the “SuperGreen” product that is sourced from 100% renewable energy. CleanPowerSF enters into short and long-term power purchase agreements for this energy with project developers and facility owners across the Bay Area and throughout the state.

Power Interconnection Costs

Under the new Wholesale Distribution Tariff (WDT) proposed by Pacific Gas & Electric Company (PG&E) in 2020, all new power interconnections will need to be at primary voltage. This imposes an additional cost of $500,000 for most new interconnections. Any capital project that requires a new, upgraded, or relocated electrical service will be impacted by this requirement.

In addition, the WDT rates have transitioned from a fixed rate methodology to formula rates which allows PG&E to impose new costs or adjust rates annually. The result is that the distribution rates have doubled. The City now pays over $25 million per year for distribution level service in addition to approximately $30 million per year for transmission level service through the California Independent System Operator (CAISO). The City must also pay substantial additional costs for the installation of oversized equipment (primary voltage) on secondary loads and costs for upgrades to PG&E’s system. The City has reached a settlement on the new rate structure but is still litigating other costs, including, but not limited to, the requirements for more costly equipment and requirements to pay for upgrades to the PG&E system that PG&E’s retail customers benefit from.