New report looks at dangerous speeds in San Francisco and how to become a ‘safe speeds city’
When drivers go dangerous speeds, the risk for you, me, and our loved ones skyrockets.
Speed is consistently the #1 cause of severe and fatal crashes in San Francisco.
This makes sense. The faster a driver is going, the more likely a crash is to occur. A driver has a smaller scope of vision, less time to react, and can’t stop the vehicle as quickly.
And the human body can’t withstand the additional force as speeds rise.
The Slow Our Streets campaign
Walk San Francisco launched the Slow Our Streets campaign in 2020 to take on dangerous speeds. There is simply no faster way to save lives from traffic crashes.
In 2021, together with our members, 35+ groups in the Vision Zero Coalition, and Families for Safe Streets, we successfully pushed the City to commit to creating a comprehensive speed management plan.
But this win will only be meaningful if the plan itself has meaningful commitments along with the funds and accountability needed to make it happen. So in 2022 with the help of volunteers and neighborhood groups, Walk SF conducted speed surveys around the city to see what’s really happening. We also researched everything San Francisco is – and isn’t – doing related to speed, plus what’s really working here and elsewhere.
Today, Walk SF released a report that is the culmination of that work and a blueprint for San Francisco to become what we call ‘a safe speed city.’
Our new report: Making San Francisco a ‘Safe Speeds City’: Solutions to Slow Our Streets and Save Lives
If San Francisco were a ‘safe speeds city’ we would all feel it every day, on every street. We would immediately see significantly fewer tragedies. Our neighborhoods – especially the Tenderloin, the Bayview, and South of Market – would feel more like neighborhoods, and communities would be stronger.
And San Francisco would take a huge leap in progress toward Vision Zero. In 2024, it will be a decade since San Francisco’s leaders and agencies committed to Vision Zero: a data-driven, preventative, and intersectional approach to ending severe and fatal traffic crashes.
There’s no better time and way for the City to live out this promise than addressing speed in every way possible now. So read the report and join the movement to Slow Our Streets to save lives.
Walk SF members are invited to two conversations about the new report
We will host online conversations on Wednesday, November 16 from 12:00-1:00PM and Thursday, November 17 from 6:00-7:00PM. RSVP now.
These member-only online conversations will share highlights from the report – and discuss how we’re going to push San Francisco to lead on dangerous speeds.
Questions? Contact Marta Lindsey, Communications Director, at marta@walksf.org.
