San Francisco’s busy streets run amok, with motorists, bicyclists, and pedestrians all trying to outmaneuver one another. It’s a dangerous situation with dire consequences: The city has recorded hundreds of traffic deaths over the past decade.
And then there are the politics of it all — the constant pedestrian-bicyclist-car-transit battle, a never-ending headache for elected officials.
Can the city’s chaotic streets — and political conversation around transit — be fixed? As part of our “Ask the candidates” series, we collected questions from readers about the most pressing issues and presented them to the candidates. We’re publishing the responses leading up to Election Day.
Jeremy R. says:
“I live in the Castro and work in mid-Market; basically, every day it’s a battle to survive just crossing the street (and no, I don’t jaywalk). It feels like drivers have become much more reckless. How will you make our streets safe?“
London Breed
The mayor said this year that streets need a “complete overhaul” after the failure of Vision Zero, a decade-long, multimillion-dollar City Hall plan to eliminate traffic deaths.
In her questionnaire for The Standard, Breed said she has advocated for speed cameras across the city and pushed for lowering speed limits. She has also advocated for pedestrian- and bike-friendly spaces, including devoted bike lanes, slow streets, and car-free roads like JFK Promenade.
The city’s infrastructure was “redesigned in the middle part of the last century to prioritize cars at the expense of pedestrians and bicyclists,” Breed wrote, and modernizing it will “take time” and “political will.”
“All of this is to say that I care deeply about street safety, and have a record to show for it,” she added. “But we have so much more work to do, and this will continue to be a priority for my administration.”
Daniel Lurie
The nonprofit founder said he envisions automated enforcement for reckless drivers, “truly” protected bike lanes, safer spaces for walking, and the installation of metal bollards.
In his questionnaire, he blamed the well-documented rift between bicyclists and drivers on the incumbent mayor and pledged to “develop a comprehensive plan that addresses all of our needs and apply safety fixes throughout the city.”
Lurie called sufficient public transit “an integral part of the solution.” He added that “transit must be fast, reliable, and safe. Everyone who takes public transportation should feel safe riding.”
Aaron Peskin
The Board of Supervisors president said that while safer streets and sidewalks are vital, it’s just as important to hold drivers and operators of autonomous vehicles accountable.
Peskin called for hiring more police officers to focus on traffic enforcement — and pointed to the declining number of tickets handed out by the SFPD in the last decade. (The number has increased in recent months.) Like Breed, Peskin said he helped bring automated speed cameras to the city.
“We need to ensure that anyone who breaks traffic laws — drivers, bicyclists, and pedestrians — face consequences,” Peskin wrote in his questionnaire.
Mark Farrell
The former interim mayor has caught flak from pedestrians and bicyclists for advocating to bring back cars to Market Street but maintains that he supports more bicycle lanes citywide. He pledged to install bollards at intersections that are dangerous for pedestrians.
Farrell blasted Breed for what he describes as “ideology, not pragmatism” when it comes to the SF Municipal Transportation Agency led by Jeffrey Tumlin. If elected, Farrell has committed to firing Tumlin.
“I believe we can balance providing more safety infrastructure and projects that promote walking, biking, and public transit while not making it impossible to drive and park in San Francisco,” Farrell wrote in his questionnaire.
Want to read each candidate’s entire response on street safety? Click here.