San Francisco Bicycle Coalition
The San Francisco Bicycle Coalition is a San Francisco-based nonprofit advocacy organization working to make bicycling safer, more practical, and more widely used for everyday transportation.
Last updated November 4, 2026
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Overview
The San Francisco Bicycle Coalition (SFBC) is a California 501(c)(4) nonprofit public-benefit corporation and membership-based transportation advocacy organization. Its central purpose is to transform San Francisco streets and neighborhoods into safer, more livable places by promoting the bicycle as a practical form of everyday transportation. Rather than selling conventional consumer products, the organization operates as a civic and membership brand: it combines public-policy advocacy, community organizing, education, events, communications, and political engagement around cycling and street design. The coalition was founded in 1971 by Jack Murphy as a volunteer coalition representing eight organizations, including the Sierra Club and San Francisco Tomorrow. Its early work focused on gaining recognition for bicycles in a city transportation system dominated by automobiles and transit. Early accomplishments included helping establish car-free Sundays in Golden Gate Park and advocating for bicycle access through major transportation corridors such as the Broadway Tunnel, Skyline Drive, and the Golden Gate Bridge. The organization also supported bicycle access to Bay Area Rapid Transit in cooperation with the East Bay Bicycle Coalition. An early campaign for protected bicycle lanes on Market Street, during reconstruction associated with the BART and Muni Metro projects, received approval from the San Francisco Board of Supervisors in 1972 but was not implemented after opposition from the city's Department of Public Works. The SFBC was largely inactive during the 1980s and was re-established in October 1990. Its revival began with a newsletter, originally called Tubular Times and later renamed Tube Times. By 1996, the organization had grown to approximately 1,000 members, hired its first paid staff member, executive director Dave Snyder, and opened an office on Market Street. Its advocacy contributed to the development and adoption of the 1997 San Francisco Bicycle Plan, which produced bicycle lanes and related improvements on numerous city streets. In 2000, the coalition changed its nonprofit tax status so it could participate more directly in electoral politics, including candidate endorsements and district-level organizing. It later played a major role in updating the city's bicycle plan. Beginning in 2003, it organized outreach involving residents and neighborhood groups in a planning process that produced a five-year package of 60 bicycle-network projects. The plan was unanimously approved by the Board of Supervisors in 2005, but litigation and a court-required environmental review delayed physical bicycle improvements for several years. The environmental impact report was completed in 2009, and implementation resumed in 2010. The organization broadened its coalition-building work through Healthy Saturdays in Golden Gate Park and the launch of Sunday Streets in 2008, when selected streets were closed to motor vehicles for community activities. These programs helped introduce cycling advocacy to new participants and created working relationships with neighborhood organizations and merchant groups, including some communities that had previously opposed particular bicycle projects. Membership exceeded 10,000 by 2009 and 12,000 by early 2011. In 2024, the organization reported more than 6,000 dues-paying members. The SFBC's policy agenda has included connected bicycle lanes, protected cycle tracks, traffic calming, improved street maintenance, bicycle parking, transit integration, and slower vehicle speeds. Its Connecting the City campaign called for a large network of protected routes intended to make cycling comfortable for people across a broad age range, summarized by the phrase 'ages 8 to 80.' The coalition also sponsors Bike to Work Day, using neighborhood rides, Bike Buddies, and Energizer Stations with refreshments to encourage people to commute by bicycle. The organization has also taken positions on policing and enforcement. In 2020, it ended formal ties with the police, citing concerns about racialized police violence, and urged consideration of the consequences of involving police in situations affecting cyclists and residents. It opposed legislation that would have prohibited selling five or more bicycles on the street because enforcement would have depended on police action. By 2024, it was reassessing its position on enforcement of bicycle-theft laws. The SFBC remains an active San Francisco transportation advocacy organization, with its influence expressed through campaigns, public comment, voter engagement, community events, and participation in debates over the city's street network.
History
The San Francisco Bicycle Coalition began in 1971 as a volunteer coalition founded by Jack Murphy. Its original mission was to promote bicycles as an everyday transportation mode rather than solely as recreational equipment. The founding coalition included representatives from eight organizations, among them the Sierra Club and San Francisco Tomorrow. Early campaigns demonstrated the group's preference for practical demonstrations and public-space advocacy. It helped establish car-free Sundays in Golden Gate Park and sought bicycle access through important road and transit corridors. During the reconstruction of Market Street in the early 1970s, the coalition advocated protected bicycle lanes positioned between the curb and parking spaces, with landscaped medians and left-turn pockets. The Board of Supervisors approved the concept by a 10–1 vote in 1972, but the proposal did not proceed after opposition from the Department of Public Works. The coalition nevertheless secured or supported bicycle access through the Broadway Tunnel, on Skyline Drive, across the Golden Gate Bridge, and onto the Bay Area Rapid Transit system in cooperation with the East Bay Bicycle Coalition. The SFBC was dormant for much of the 1980s. It was revived in October 1990, when it began issuing a newsletter first known as Tubular Times and later as Tube Times. By 1996, the revived organization had approximately 1,000 members, its first paid employee, executive director Dave Snyder, and an office at 1095 Market Street. Its advocacy was associated with the 1997 San Francisco Bicycle Plan, which led to bicycle lanes on routes including Arguello and Marina boulevards, Seventh Avenue, and Howard, Oak, Fell, Polk, Fifth, Second, and Cesar Chavez streets. In 2000, the coalition modified its nonprofit tax status to participate in electoral politics. It surveyed members about candidates for the Board of Supervisors and organized volunteers by district so bicycle transportation would be discussed during elections. From 2003 onward, it led an extensive public-engagement process for an update to the 1997 plan. The resulting five-year program grouped 60 bicycle-route and network projects and was unanimously approved by the Board of Supervisors in June 2005. Implementation was delayed by legal and environmental-review requirements. A lawsuit led to a preliminary injunction in June 2006, preventing physical bicycle improvements, including lanes, bicycle parking, and sharrows. The injunction was upheld in November 2006 while the city prepared a full environmental impact report. The report was completed in June 2009 and certified by the Board of Supervisors in August of that year. On August 9, 2010, city officials, transportation representatives, neighborhood groups, and business owners marked the striping of a new bicycle lane on Townsend Street. The San Francisco Municipal Transportation Agency had begun constructing the planned network in August 2010. The coalition expanded its community work through Healthy Saturdays, a campaign to restore a car-free weekend day in Golden Gate Park, and through Sunday Streets, introduced in 2008 as a series of temporary neighborhood street closures. These programs helped the organization reach residents who might not otherwise participate in bicycle advocacy and encouraged cooperation with neighborhood associations and merchant groups. Membership surpassed 10,000 by 2009 and 12,000 by early 2011, when the coalition was described as the largest city-based bicycle advocacy organization in the United States. Connecting the City became one of the SFBC's most visible campaigns. It called for a 100-mile network of three fully separated bicycle paths or cycle tracks, designed to connect San Francisco neighborhoods and make cycling comfortable for people from ages eight to 80. More broadly, the organization has argued that a connected bicycle network can improve safety, reduce congestion, expand mobility choices, make parking easier, support local businesses, and provide public-health benefits. It has also backed street-maintenance improvements, lower motor-vehicle speeds, bicycle parking, transit bicycle racks, and Bike to Work Day. Bike to Work Day uses organized rides from multiple neighborhoods, volunteer Bike Buddies who assist less experienced commuters, and Energizer Stations offering snacks and coffee along major cycling routes. At the 2015 event, bicycles represented 76 percent of eastbound traffic on Market Street during one morning observation period, compared with 54 percent in 2010. In 2020, the organization changed its relationship with law enforcement by ending formal ties with police, citing concerns about racialized police violence. It urged people to consider the possible human consequences of police involvement and opposed a proposal to prohibit selling five or more bicycles on the street because enforcing the measure would require police action. By 2024, the coalition was reassessing its position on enforcement of bicycle-theft laws. It continues to operate as a San Francisco-focused membership advocacy organization; the organization was reported to have more than 6,000 dues-paying members in 2024.
- 2024
More than 6,000 dues-paying members reported
[1]The organization was reported to have more than 6,000 dues-paying members and to be reassessing its stance on bicycle-theft enforcement.
- 2020
Formal police relationships ended
[1]The coalition ended formal ties with police organizations because of concerns about racialized police violence.
- 2011
Membership exceeds 12,000
[1]The coalition was described as having more than 12,000 members and as the largest city-based bicycle advocacy organization in the United States.
- 2010
Physical bicycle-plan construction resumes
[1]The city began building new bicycle lanes, including a Townsend Street lane highlighted at an August ceremony.
- 2009
Environmental review completed
[1]The environmental impact report required for the updated bicycle plan was completed and later certified by the Board of Supervisors.
- 2008
Sunday Streets begins
[1]A recurring program of temporary motor-vehicle street closures expanded opportunities for cycling and neighborhood public life.
- 2005
Updated bicycle plan approved
[1]After extensive community outreach, the Board of Supervisors unanimously approved a five-year plan containing 60 bicycle-network improvement projects.
- 1997
San Francisco Bicycle Plan produces new lanes
[1]The city's bicycle plan led to additional bicycle lanes on a range of San Francisco streets.
- 1996
First paid staff and office established
[1]The organization reached about 1,000 members, hired executive director Dave Snyder as its first paid staff member, and opened an office on Market Street.
- 1990
Organization re-founded
[1]The coalition resumed operations and began publishing its newsletter, initially called Tubular Times.
Products and positioning
A civic, membership-based bicycle advocacy organization positioned around safer streets, practical everyday cycling, connected bicycle infrastructure, and more livable San Francisco neighborhoods.
Membership and civic participation
Membership program
The coalition's membership program is its principal relationship with supporters. Members provide dues and participate in advocacy, public-policy campaigns, electoral activity, community outreach, and communications concerning cycling and street design in San Francisco. The organization reported more than 6,000 dues-paying members in 2024.
Cycling outreach event
Bike to Work Day
An annual commuter-cycling initiative designed to persuade people to try bicycling for transportation. The program includes organized rides from different neighborhoods, Bike Buddies who pair new riders with more experienced cyclists, and Energizer Stations that provide snacks and coffee along busy routes.
Transportation infrastructure campaign
Connecting the City
A high-profile campaign calling for a connected citywide bicycle network, including approximately 100 miles of protected routes and three fully separated cycle-track corridors. The campaign framed safe cycling as a transportation option suitable for a broad population, including people described as ranging from ages eight to 80.
Public-space campaign · 2007
Healthy Saturdays
A coalition-led effort to restore a car-free weekend day in Golden Gate Park. The campaign used temporary street access changes to demonstrate the recreational, social, and transportation value of reducing automobile traffic in public spaces.
Open-streets program · 2008
Sunday Streets
A series of neighborhood events in which streets were temporarily closed to motor vehicles. The program supported walking, cycling, social activity, and community organizing, while helping the coalition develop relationships with neighborhood associations and merchant groups.
Marketing campaigns
- 2008Sunday Streets
San Francisco
The coalition supported a series of open-streets events that closed selected neighborhood streets to motor vehicles.
Outcome. The events broadened participation in cycling advocacy and encouraged collaboration with groups that did not always support bicycle infrastructure projects.
- 2007Healthy Saturdays
San Francisco
The coalition joined neighborhood and environmental organizations in promoting the return of a car-free weekend day in Golden Gate Park.
Outcome. The initiative helped cultivate new cycling advocates and built ties with community and merchant organizations.
- 2003Update to the San Francisco Bicycle Plan
San Francisco
The coalition organized residents and neighborhood groups to participate in the planning process for an update to the city's 1997 bicycle plan.
Outcome. The resulting five-year plan contained 60 bicycle-route network projects and was unanimously approved in June 2005, although litigation delayed implementation.
- 1971Car-free Sundays in Golden Gate Park
San Francisco
One of the coalition's early victories was helping establish Sundays without motor vehicles in Golden Gate Park, inspired by a similar Central Park street-closure initiative in New York.
Outcome. The campaign demonstrated the possibility of reallocating public street space for cycling and recreation.
- Connecting the City
San Francisco
The campaign advocated a connected network of protected bicycle routes, including a proposed 100-mile system of separated cycle tracks.
Outcome. The campaign established a prominent long-term policy framework for safer, citywide bicycle transportation.
- Bike to Work Day
San Francisco
The annual event encourages commuting by bicycle through group rides, peer support, and staffed refreshment stations.
Outcome. The event has attracted thousands of cyclists and increased the visibility of bicycle commuting in San Francisco.
Brand decisions
2020
Formal relationships with police are endedStrategyBackground
The coalition cited concerns about racialized police violence and the potential effects of police involvement in community situations.
Action taken
It severed formal ties with police and urged members and the public to consider the possible impact on human life when involving law enforcement.
Aftermath
The coalition opposed a bicycle-sales restriction that it believed would require police enforcement and was reassessing its position on bicycle-theft enforcement in 2024.
2005
Coalition backs updated city bicycle planStrategyBackground
The 1997 bicycle plan required an update to address a more connected citywide bicycle network.
Action taken
The SFBC led public outreach and supported a five-year package of 60 bicycle-network improvement projects.
Aftermath
The Board of Supervisors approved the plan unanimously, but a lawsuit and environmental review delayed physical construction until 2010.
2000
Coalition changes nonprofit status to support electoral advocacyStrategyBackground
The organization sought to participate more directly in city elections and influence candidate positions on bicycle transportation.
Action taken
It changed its nonprofit tax status, surveyed members about Board of Supervisors candidates, endorsed candidates, and organized district-level volunteers.
Aftermath
Electoral organizing became part of the coalition's broader transportation-advocacy model.
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