Castro Rainbow Crosswalks — Castro/Upper Market CBD, San Francisco

📷 More photos

💡 5 things to know

1. Picked by a public voteThe parallel-stripe design was chosen from four options in a vote of about 4,500 people; KQED says it was the favourite of 4,500 votes cast online and in person, though not everyone in the neighbourhood liked it. CBS later said more than 4,000 people voted. Source Source Source Source Checked
2. Paid for by local merchantsThe Castro/Upper Market Community Benefit District agreed to fund the four decorative crosswalks; ABC7 reported the district’s merchants were paying about $37,000, inside a $4.5 million city-funded streetscape project. Source Source Reported
3. Subtler than West HollywoodBefore installation, ABC7 reported the design was expected to be a more subtle, sophisticated version than the rainbow crosswalks then on the streets of West Hollywood. Source Reported
4. Hidden for a TV shoot, then damagedIn May 2016 a crew filming the ABC miniseries When We Rise covered the stripes to hide them; when the covering was pulled up, adhesive left black gunk that power washing could not remove. Source Source Source Checked
5. ABC pledged to pay for new stripesSFist reported the crosswalks would be regraded and re-laid on 19 and 20 September 2016, with a drainage fix by the original contractor under warranty; the production pledged to pay for the replacement. Source Source Reported

📍 Where it is

🗓️ Sightings

1. 201413 Mar

   Design unveiled · Streetsblog SF

2. 20141 Oct

   Newly installed · CBS San Francisco

3. 201413 Oct

   Photo of the new stripes · Wikimedia Commons

4. 20158 Jun

   Photo of the corner · Wikimedia Commons

5. 201616 May

   Damaged by a TV shoot · SFist

6. 201628 Aug

   Photo before the re-laying · Wikimedia Commons

7. 201613 Sep

   Re-laying set for 19–20 Sep · SFist

8. 202631 Jan

   Photo with a trolleybus · Wikimedia Commons

Green stamps mark dated photos of the crosswalks; amber stamps mark reports. Publication dates are not camera dates.

🗞️ In the sources

✅ The facts

Commissioned by

Castro/Upper Market Community Benefit District, which agreed to fund the four decorative crosswalks Source Source Source Checked

Designer

Not named in the sources we found Unconfirmed

Location

The four crosswalks at the intersection of Castro Street and 18th Street, Castro District, San Francisco Source Source Source Checked

Design

Parallel rainbow stripes, chosen from four options in a vote of about 4,500 people (CBS: more than 4,000) Source Source Source Source Checked

Unveiled

13 March 2014, at the groundbreaking of the Castro Street redesign Source Source Source Checked

Installed

Autumn 2014. SFist later said they were installed in September 2014 (“two years ago this month”, September 2016); on 1 October 2014 CBS called the crosswalk newly installed, while ABC7 said workers were putting on the finishing touches and the job was scheduled to be finished the next month Source Source Source Conflicting

Project

Part of the $4.5 million Castro Street streetscape project, the first funded by the 2011 street repair bond Source Source Source Checked

Cost

About $37,000, paid by the merchants of the Community Benefit District, according to ABC7 Source Reported

Material

Inlaid coloured asphalt, according to SFist Source Reported

Damaged

May 2016, during filming of the ABC miniseries When We Rise Source Source Source Checked

Re-laid

Scheduled for 19–20 September 2016, paid for by the production Source Source Reported

Status

Photographed on 31 January 2026 Source Checked

🔗 Related

• Rainbows Made by Hand (10 Photos) — Street Art Utopia
• All Artwork Files

Last checked: 7 November 2026 · How we verify art