Doyle Drive demolition wrecking weekend plans

SAN FRANCISCO (KGO) -- The Doyle Drive closure is promising to turn traffic around the Golden Gate Bridge into gridlock all weekend. Doyle Drive is one of the most seismically-unsafe roadways in the state, so at 8 p.m. Friday, Caltrans will shut it down and begin tearing down pretty much everything between Highway 1 and Marina Boulevard.

Some nearby businesses say the demolition could hit them hard while others don't expect their business to be hurt too badly by customers who cannot or choose not to deal with the traffic.

Dave Schaeffer is not jumping for joy about the closure, but he's not terribly worried either. Schaeffer owns House Of Air, an indoor trampoline park at Crissy Field, just below Doyle Drive. Asked if he gave his customers any kind of warning he said, "Extensively. We've been as candid as possible about the backup issues." House of Air is on Mason Street which through Crissy Field and could be one of the congested streets this weekend, handling traffic that would otherwise be on Doyle Drive.

The Sports Basement is also there, sitting a stone's throw from a section of Doyle that will be coming down in giant chunks. Co-founder Tom Phillips plans on business as usual Saturday and Sunday. "Actually, we're excited about it. I think it's going to be fun to watch it come down," he said.

It has not been fun at all for Erin Lavin and Jared Ruger. Their wedding and reception was supposed to be in the Presidio Saturday, just 100 feet or so from where wrecking balls and jackhammers will be at work. They had two weeks to re-plan everything. "It would have almost been more stressful if the band couldn't' have made it, or some minor detail. This was so ridiculous that honestly we kind of laughed and just said there has to be some reason that this is happening," groom Jared Ruger said.

The bride and groom did manage to move their wedding and reception. They have 160 guests coming in this weekend from all across the country. They say postponing the wedding was never an option.

How you will get around the Doyle Drive closure? For more information on the traffic impact and alternate routes, check out ABC7 News' exclusive Waze traffic app.

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doyle drive, caltrans, traffic, golden gate bridge, presidio, san francisco news, heather ishimaru

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