The status of the ‘Stop Super Speeders Act’, AB 2276
Year after year, speeding is the #1 cause of severe and fatal crashes here in San Francisco and statewide.
That’s why on May 5, Walk SF headed to Sacramento with our San Francisco Bay Area chapter of Families for Safe Streets to share stories with legislators about why every possible solution is needed to address dangerous speeding.
This California legislative session offered state electeds a chance to bring a powerful new solution to California. The ‘Stop Super Speeders Act’, AB 2276, (Soria), would require what’s called ‘active Intelligent Speed Assistance’ to be installed in the vehicles of drivers convicted of severe speeding-related offenses so they can’t speed. This preventative approach targets the drivers who pose the greatest threat to us all, and acknowledges the fact that 75% of drivers with suspended licenses continue to drive.
I’m deeply disappointed to share that while AB 2276 was passed unanimously by the Assembly Privacy Committee and Assembly Public Safety Committee, AB 2276 did not make it out of the Assembly Appropriations Committee by the May 15 deadline. Concerns about the cost of implementation very likely held it back, which are difficult to accept given the significant cost of traffic crashes and loss of human life.
But this isn’t the end of the road. Because of the stories shared by Families for Safe Streets members, the bill got real momentum and more legislators ready to champion this solution in the future. And this is part of a national movement. Hawaii, Maryland, and Georgia recently passed Stop Super Speeders Acts, and New York just got the Stop Super Speeders Act into its state budget.
We’re grateful to Assemblymember Soria for authoring AB 2276; please take a moment to thank her for all she did to move this bill forward.
Like we’re seeing with speed cameras, there are proven safety technologies that can dramatically change driver behavior and reduce the number of tragedies on our streets.
And we need them now. The pandemic unleashed more frequent, extreme speeding and reckless driving, and these trends have continued. New vehicles can reach high speeds in just a few seconds. Drivers are more distracted and aggressive than ever before, putting us all at risk.
Walk SF will continue to push for the solutions needed to adequately address dangerous speeding with the support of our members.
A special thank you to National Families for Safe Streets. Two of their staff joined us in Sacramento in support of AB 2276, and the organization is supporting efforts around the country to pass ‘Stop Super Speeder’ bills.
