Vermont Street is the curviest street of San Francisco
Located in the Potrero Hill district of San Francisco, in Northern California, Vermont Street is said to be the crookedest street in the United States. Hold on to the steering wheel and get ready for a series of hairpin turns on a stretch of roadway that few travelers and locals know about.
Where is Vermont Street?
Located near McKinley Square, the one way (downhill) street runs north-south from Division Street to Cesar Chavez Street. It is paved with concrete. It is dubbed as the crookedest in the world in competition with the better-known Lombard Street because of its steeper grade and tighter turning radius between each switchback. Around one million cars drive down it every year. Originally it was a two-way street, but in 1939 it became one-way going down.
Is Vermont Street challenging?
The street has seven sharp turns. Parking is available at the top of the street. The street has a 14.3 percent grade and has five full turns and two half turns. The paving bricks are a little slippery, and the turns are tight. The only warning you’ll get before you go over the crest of the hill is a yellow sign with the squiggly-arrow on it. After that, you’re on your own as you rumble down uneven cement, broken pavement, and if you’re driving a large sized vehicle, avoiding nicking your bumper on the sides of the concrete walls.
Where was Bullitt filmed?
It’s been featured in countless movies such as 1973’s Magnum Force where Clint Eastwood as Dirty Harry maneuvers around its hairpin turns and in the 1968 film, Bullitt, where Steve McQueen pilots his Mustang.