San Francisco has reached an agreement with the California Department of Transportation that allows city crews to clear homeless encampments and conduct clean-ups on state-owned freeway property within city limits, including key on- and off-ramps along US 101 and Interstate 80. Until now, the city needed state permission to operate on those parcels, limiting its response to encampments that have proliferated under elevated roadways. Mayor Daniel Lurie said the partnership will let workers remove tents, debris and fire hazards while offering shelter and services to those living at the sites. The administration will prioritise locations that pose immediate health and safety risks, such as areas close to traffic lanes or unstable structures. Some costs are expected to be reimbursed by the state. City Hall credits earlier neighbourhood street-team efforts for a 40 percent rise in shelter placements—1,296 in the first four months of the year—and says the overall number of street encampments has fallen about 25 percent since March. The new freeway-cleanup authority extends that strategy to some of the city’s most visible corridors, although advocates warn sweeps alone will not solve long-term housing and addiction problems.