2024 was deadliest year on San Francisco roads in 2 decades, sparking calls for safer streets
SAN FRANCISCO — The year 2024 was one of the deadliest years on San Francisco's roads over the last twenty years.
As of the final evening of the year, there were 41 traffic-related fatalities, including 24 pedestrians.
"None are acceptable," said Stephen Gorski, a longtime San Francisco resident.
Gorski lives near the scene of the latest incident. A woman died after being hit by a car on the Upper Great Highway near Ulloa.
"I'm so sorry for the family," he said. "It's such a bad tragedy."
It happened before sunrise on December 27, according to the San Francisco Police Department. There isn't a crosswalk where the incident occurred. Gorski urges people not to use this tragedy to politicize the Great Highway debate.
"Don't do that to the family. Just like, don't," he said.
Gorski believes the city needs to do more to protect pedestrians throughout San Francisco.
"Better enforcement and better traffic control," he said.
Those are top of mind for Jodie Medeiros, of WalkSF, who is deeply troubled by the deadly year on San Francisco roads.
"This is a public health epidemic that the city is trying to address, and we need them to do it faster and more effectively," she said.
Medeiros remains optimistic, however, that 2025 will show improvement in part because of new laws on the books and more traffic enforcement. She points toward daylighting as one example.
"What that does is, it just gives the driver and the person crossing the street a clear line of sight," she said.
She thinks the addition of 33 speed cameras, which will be placed strategically throughout the city, will make a difference once they become active in March.
"We only have 24 motorcycle officers. They can't be everywhere all the time, but the speed cameras are on 24/7 and will really change people's behavior, and that's what we're looking for," she said. "Speeding is the number one cause of traffic-related fatalities in San Francisco."
The 41 traffic-related deaths come as the city is deep in its "Vision Zero" push. Despite that, Medeiros stands strong in her belief that Vision Zero is making the streets safer overall. San Francisco's pedestrian deaths increased by a significantly lower rate than the national average, per the San Francisco Municipal Transportation Agency.
"We've seen huge improvements because of Vision Zero. Those streets that have gotten the road diets and intersection improvements, they've seen the reduction in crashes," Medeiros said.
She says the strategy needs to be renewed and improved.
"We need a lot more agency collaboration – so, fire department, police department, department of public health, department of public works, along with the SFMTA, working together to make sure that this is a priority for the city," she said. "We really feel like, if we can make our streets safe for the 8-year-old to the 80-year-old, everybody in between wins."
Gorski hopes the city steps up. However, he also says it's on everyone to do their part to make the roads safer.
"Drivers, pedestrians, cyclists, runners, walkers — be vigilant, be aware of your surroundings, and obey the traffic laws," he said.
