Traffic deaths in San Francisco fell in 2025: what this does & doesn’t mean

One year ago, we grieved the highest number of traffic deaths in a decade. 42 people died in traffic crashes on San Francisco’s streets in 2024. 24 were pedestrians, including a family of four killed in West Portal. 

In 2025, San Francisco had 25 traffic deaths – a notable drop. Of these, 16 were pedestrians, making up 68% of crash victims.

Since 2014, when San Francisco first committed to Vision Zero, the number of traffic deaths has oscillated quite a bit. The lowest total traffic deaths from 2014 – 2024 were in 2017 (20 fatalities).

What does the 2025 number mean? It’s too soon to tell. It also doesn’t include the full picture. 

Looking at traffic deaths alone isn’t the full picture; severe injuries must also be considered.

For the past decade in San Francisco, more than 500 people have been severely injured annually in crashes. 

We need this data, but it is unknown when the Department of Public Health will release severe injury data for 2025. Police data must be validated by the Department of Public Health (DPH) and the SFMTA, and when this has been released has varied greatly in recent years. 

But regardless, could this be a turning point for traffic deaths in San Francisco? Yes. 

The City brought many more proven safety improvements to our streets in the first decade of Vision Zero. And 2025 was a big year: 

• Speed cameras, one of the most powerful solutions for preventing crashes, were installed at 33 locations in early 2025. 
• The SFMTA is close to completing basic safety fixes at 900 dangerous intersections. This includes high-visibility painted crosswalks, daylighting, plus traffic signals that give pedestrians a head start and more time to cross.
• Nearly half of intersections now have daylighting. According to the SFMTA (see slide 28 here), almost 4,000 of ~9,000 intersections have some amount of daylighting (the ones painted before the new state law may have less than 20 feet at some locations). Daylighting is one of the cheapest and most effective ways to prevent crashes by ensuring clear sightlines.

But if you walk in our city, you know that we remain highly at-risk as pedestrians. 

Of the 16 pedestrians killed in 2025, 12 were seniors. More than half of pedestrian deaths were hit and runs. These are disturbing trends that indicate how much work remains. 

While people inside of vehicles have never been safer, those outside the vehicle are now much more at risk. Vehicles are bigger and heavier, which raises the stakes if a crash occurs. Vehicles are also more powerful, making it easy for drivers to accelerate to high speeds in just a few seconds. For every mile faster a driver goes, the odds and severity of crashes skyrockets. 

There’s another worrisome trend: the percentage of total crashes resulting in death has been rising in recent years, as well as the number of speed-related crashes (read more in this 2024 SFMTA report). 

The threats we face as pedestrians remain all-too-real, and much more must be done to adequately protect people.

That’s why City leaders must work harder and faster than ever to bring more safety solutions to our streets. Because solutions exist – it’s about applying them at the scale needed.

In 2025, we also saw meaningful commitments by Mayor Lurie and the Board of Supervisors that would accelerate progress on Vision Zero. 

In December, Mayor Lurie issued an executive directive on traffic safety. In September, the Board of Supervisors unanimously supported the Street Safety Act authored by District 7 Supervisor Melgar. These commitments, paired with much more accountability and oversight for agencies from the Mayor’s Office, could make Vision Zero a success story in its second decade. San Francisco could be a true leader on safe streets if this is a true priority of our leaders. 

Walk SF, with the support of our members and working with our partners, will not stop pushing for our leaders to deliver more of the real and lasting changes needed. 

Because everyone deserves to be safe getting around San Francisco’s streets: every day and everywhere. If you feel the same, I hope you’ll join us! 

Banner image: Lynn Friedman