Sunset Dunes: What to Know About San Francisco’s Great Highway Park
Sunset Dunes, the car-free park that replaced the upper Great Highway along Ocean Beach, has now been open for more than a year. It runs about two miles down the west side of San Francisco, from Lincoln Way to Sloat Boulevard, and it drew more than 1.7 million visits in its first year, according to Local News Matters. Here is what the park is, how it came to be, and how to get there.
What the Park Is
Sunset Dunes sits on the stretch of the former Great Highway between Lincoln Way and Sloat Boulevard, next to Ocean Beach in the Sunset District. The old roadway is now separated walking and biking paths, with the coastal side set aside for slower speeds. Amenities include art installations, a skate area, a bike pump track, outdoor exercise equipment, a nature exploration area for children, benches, and hammocks, per San Francisco Recreation and Parks. The park is open daily from 5 a.m. to midnight and is run by the Recreation and Parks Department.
How It Happened
The upper Great Highway first closed to cars on certain days in April 2020, to give people space during the pandemic. In November 2024, San Francisco voters passed Proposition K, which permanently closed that two-mile stretch to vehicles and turned it into parkland. The measure passed 55 percent to 45 percent, as reported by the San Francisco Chronicle. The road closed to traffic in March 2025, and the park opened on April 12, 2025. At least 13,000 people came on opening day.
The name came from a public process. The Recreation and Parks Department collected thousands of suggestions and ran a citywide survey, then chose Sunset Dunes from five finalists that also included Playland Park, Great Parkway, Fogline, and Plover Parkway.
The Debate Over Its Future
The park remains a live political question. Proposition K was placed on the ballot by Supervisors Joel Engardio and Myrna Melgar. Engardio, who represented the Sunset as District 4 supervisor, was later recalled from office by voters upset over the closure, and his successor Alan Wong has supported returning cars to the Great Highway. Traffic studies released by the SFMTA in 2025 found minimal changes to driving and transit times after the closure. The Recreation and Parks Department began a longer-term visioning and planning process for the space in 2026, funded in part by a $1 million state Coastal Conservancy grant.
Getting There
Muni’s N Judah light rail ends near the park’s northern end at Ocean Beach, close to Lincoln Way. The 18 46th Avenue bus runs along the western edge of the Sunset near the park. Ocean Beach is one of the foggiest parts of the city, so summer mornings are often gray and cool along the coast. For more on what is happening around town, see our guide to things to do in San Francisco in July 2026.
Photo: U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, public domain, via Wikimedia Commons.
