(Ed. Note: The site looks like it was attacked by malicious software so I’ve removed the link, for now. I’ll put it back up when they’ve fixed the problem. Still, the idea is there.)

Slated to start in 2010, and to continue through to 2011, The Marin Headlands and Fort Baker Transportation Infrastructure and Management Plan proposes to make “improvements to 11 miles of historic roads in the Marin Headlands and Fort Baker”. The proposed project, which is outlined very impressively in a new website (this is becoming a trend), is set to improve the majority of the roads in the most heavily visited portion of the Marin Headlands, with most of those roads having spectacular views of the Golden Gate Bridge, San Francisco and the coast of the Headlands. According to the site, the project’s main purpose is to:

…make improvements to roadway surfaces and configurations, drainage structures, directional signage and safety and will help to promote public transit, pedestrian, and bicycle travel to and within the park while preserving the historic character of the areas.

While that sounds all nice and rosy for future visitors, I almost guarantee that your first instinct is to ask, “How is that going to affect my travels to that beautiful, wide-open and wind-swept portion of Marin?” I know it was mine. According to the site’s maps (and there are enough of them), you will still be able to access the full brunt of the Headlands, all the way to Fort Cronkite and the Marine Mammel Center, where, let’s face it, all the best trails lead from. You will, on the other hand, not be able to take one of my favorite roads in the Bay Area- Upper Conzelman Rd. Upper Conzelman is otherwise known “as that windy, one-way road that hugs the south cost of the Headlands, providing unparalleled views of both the bridge and the city”. Or at least that’s how I refer to it. That’s really the only road that will be closed in 2010, so access isn’t hindered- you can still get to the lighthouse and you can still take both the tunnel and hill entrances/exits.

Whether you are a driver, a bus-rider, a biker or a backpacker, the website will have all of the construction updates categorized for you so you’ll be able to know how and when you’re pleasant little trip will be affected.

All in all, I honestly think this is a great move for an agency/National Park. The site is easy to read and easy to remember and if everyone abides all congestion problems could be non-existent. That plan, however, does not do anything to remedy the fact that Conzelman is closed. Before the new year, if you live in the Bay Area, and you get a nice, sunny day, take that ride along the southern Marin ridge- because while the construction is ongoing in 2010 you’ll probably be wishing you had.