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The Iconic “Path of Gold” Streetlights Get Brilliant Update

The Iconic “Path of Gold” Streetlights Get Brilliant Update
  • Elizabeth Grubb
Photo from 1947: Path of Gold Light Standards – was created and installed in the early twentieth century and stretches along Market Street between Steuart and Castro Streets
Photo from 1947: Path of Gold Light Standards – was created and installed in the early twentieth century and stretches along Market Street between Steuart and Castro Streets

If you have ever walked down Market Street, you may have noticed ornate, gold streetlights that evoke a past era. This historical landmark - known as the Path of Gold Light Standards – was created and installed in the early twentieth century and stretches along Market Street between Steuart and Castro Streets. The light poles themselves were designed by Willis Polk, an architect and builder famous for his San Francisco designs, including the War Memorial Opera House.

Thanks to the San Francisco Public Utilities Commission's (SFPUC) Utility Field Services team, the iconic streetlights were recently converted to energy and money-saving LED bulbs, simultaneously making Market Street more illuminated and energy efficient. Over the past year, Utility Field Services replaced 474 high pressure sodium lights – 158 light poles with 3 bulbs each – with LED light bulbs. This sustainable switch is saving 57.7 megawatt hours a month with monthly energy costs. 

Before the conversion began, SFPUC’s Streetlight Engineers conducted research to determine the best way to approach replacing the old bulbs with LED ones. The replacement bulb was chosen to be an equivalent to the existing high pressure sodium lights. After this initial research, the Utility Field Services team began the replacement work in August 2023 and completed the conversion of all lights in August 2024. 

Because of the Path of Gold Light Standards is over 100 years old, the project came with some unique challenges. The conversion was not as simple as taking out the old bulb and inserting a new, LED light bulb. Rather, electrical rewiring was necessary to make the old engineering compatible with LED lights. With time, many of the nuts and bolts had rusted, requiring repairs and reworking too. 

New Path of Gold Light.
New Path of Gold Light.

This conversion project cuts at the heart of both sustainable innovation and historic preservation. The light poles are beautifully ornate for a reason: since the overhead trolley wires were widely unpopular, the City required that United Railways provide intricate light poles as a concession. Subsequently, United Railways hired Willis Polk to create the base and pole. Later, the lights themselves were designed by Italian sculptor Leo Lentelli and pivotal lighting engineer Walter D'Arcy Ryan, who designed the lights for the 1915 Panama-Pacific International Exposition held in San Francisco. San Francisco classics like the Palace of Fine Arts and the Bill Graham Auditorium were also built for the exposition.

The Path of Gold Light Standards represent the innovative, progressive spirit of San Francisco: from the invention of the trolley car, which still runs today on Hetch Hetchy Power’s clean energy; to the 1915 Panama-Pacific International Exposition which showcased San Francisco’s architectural mastery; to now bringing the streetlights into the 21st century with the use of LED lightbulbs. The Path of Gold lights’ rich history lives on in sustainable style, while saving energy and helping Market Street shine a little brighter.