Lombard Street Quiz: San Francisco's Crooked Hairpin Turns

This Lombard Street quiz rolls slowly down San Francisco's famous zigzag block on Russian Hill. Play an interactive set of 10 questions on its eight hairpin turns, why it was built in 1922, the steep grade it tamed, brick paving, the 5 mph speed limit, one-way traffic, hydrangea gardens, Vermont Street's rival claim and the cable car stop at the top.

Start Lombard Street Quiz

🎯 Daily Trivia Challenge • 🧠 10 Questions • ⏱️ 150 Seconds

Question 1 / 10 Time: 150s

City
Which city is Lombard Street in?
Turns
How many hairpin turns are on the famous block?
Why
Why were the curves built?
Year
When were the curves built?
Surface
What is the curvy block paved with?
Speed
What is the speed limit on the curvy block?
Way
Which way does traffic go on the curves?
Flowers
Which flowers bloom along the curves?
Rival
Which San Francisco street is actually more crooked?
Cable
Which cable car line stops at the top of the block?

Explanations: answer key for all 10 questions

Q1: Which city is Lombard Street in?
Answer: San Francisco
It is on Russian Hill.
Q2: How many hairpin turns are on the famous block?
Answer: Eight
They zigzag down the hill.
Q3: Why were the curves built?
Answer: To reduce the steep slope
The grade was too steep for cars.
Q4: When were the curves built?
Answer: 1922
Cars were becoming common.
Q5: What is the curvy block paved with?
Answer: Red bricks
Bricks add grip.
Q6: What is the speed limit on the curvy block?
Answer: 5 mph
Drivers creep down slowly.
Q7: Which way does traffic go on the curves?
Answer: One-way downhill
Pedestrians use stairs beside it.
Q8: Which flowers bloom along the curves?
Answer: Hydrangeas
Residents tend the gardens.
Q9: Which San Francisco street is actually more crooked?
Answer: Vermont Street
It is less famous.
Q10: Which cable car line stops at the top of the block?
Answer: Powell-Hyde
Riders hop off for photos.

Eight Hairpins on Russian Hill

Lombard Street on San Francisco's Russian Hill is famous for one block with eight tight hairpin turns. In 1922 the zigzag design was built to tame a slope too steep for early cars. The red brick road, framed by hydrangeas and gardens, became one of the city's most photographed sights.

Traffic runs one-way downhill at just 5 miles per hour, and pedestrians climb staircases on either side. On busy days, cars line up for blocks to drive the curves, and residents have long debated ways to manage the crowds of visitors who arrive each year.

Lombard Street is often called the crookedest street in the world, but Vermont Street in the Potrero Hill area is actually more crooked. The Powell-Hyde cable car stops at the top of the famous block, giving riders a view down the curves toward Coit Tower and the bay.

What This Quiz Teaches

Travel fans will enjoy these questions.

Where the street is
Why it zigzags
How traffic moves
What lines its curves
Which street rivals it

Did You Know?

The rest of Lombard Street is a straight, busy road.
Movie car chases have used nearby hills.
The curves are best seen from the bottom.
Homes along the block have private gardens.
Early morning is the quietest time to visit.