SAN FRANCISCO—Officers from the San Francisco Police Department will be increasing patrols on 12 priority streets for next year to combat speeding drivers and protect pedestrians. Law enforcement entities will also be watching 14 other streets as well. The new initiative, a yearlong campaign called “Safe Speeds SF” will start in October. The initiative is studying the effectiveness of cutting speeding drivers on the city’s most speed-prone streets.
SFMTA launched the Safe Speeds SF campaign on September 29. The campaign was introduced with a series of radio ads that raise awareness about the dangers of speeding. The campaign was made possible by $2 million in federal grants, which the SFMTA secured through California’s Active Transportation Program.
Ed Reiskin, director of transportation at SFMTA said, “Achieving the city’s Vision Zero goal of eliminating traffic fatalities means taking proactive steps to stop deadly crashes from happening.”
The SFMTA reports streets that will have extra enforcement include: Bay Street, Howard Street, Leavensworth Street, 16th Street, Bayshore Boulevard, San Jose Street, Turk Street Pine Street, Geary Boulevard, Stanyan Street, Sunset Boulevard, and 19th Avenue.
“Priority” streets include those that are home to drivers pressing too hard on the accelerator, according to SFMTA.
Traffic enforcement will surge about 132 hours a week aimed at speeding violations. The effects of the enforcement will be studied to see how it plays in deterring speeding in San Francisco. The campaign is being worked on by the San Francisco Municipal Transportation, the SFPD and the Department of Public Health. All organizations are trying to change the behavior of motorists.
SFMTA Director of Transportation Ed Reiskin said the goal of the program was to generate awareness and change behaviors, not generate more ticket revenue.
“We don’t want people to get tickets, we want people to slow down and obey the speed limit,” said Reiskin.
NBC Bay Area reported that the safety move is done so SF Mayor Edwin M. Lee and city leaders hope to reduce the number of traffic deaths to zero by 2024, according to San Francisco’s “Vision Zero SF” initiative.
“Speed is a killer and we should do everything in our power to slow down reckless drivers – through enforcement, education, and engineering – to create safe streets,” Lee said in a statement. “And we need to focus speed enforcement in the areas where data has shown it is most needed,” he added.
