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Speed Management

SFMTA.com/SpeedManagement

Read San Francisco's Speed Management Plan here. 

Bringing Safer Speeds to San Francisco 

In San Francisco, speeding is the leading causes of traffic deaths and severe injuries—and lowering speeds is the single most effective tool we can use to save lives.  

Slowing speeds is a core principle of Vision Zero, the citywide commitment to end traffic deaths. San Francisco is developing and implementing a comprehensive speed management strategy that will reduce speed limits on key corridors throughout the city, alongside educational campaigns and outreach, improved enforcement strategies, and traffic calming. Under Assembly Bill 43 (Friedman), which was passed in 2021, San Francisco now has the authority to lower speed limits on certain streets, and the SFMTA is moving quickly to implement safer speed zones under this new legislation.  

Following the legislation, slowing speeds is happening now for business activity districts, and will happen next in safety corridors:   

Slowing Speeds in Business Activity Districts 

Under the provision of AB 43 that came into effect in January 2022, the SFMTA is lowering speeds by 5 mph (from 25 mph to 20 mph, or 30 mph to 25 mph) in key business activity districts (streets where at least half of the property uses are dining or retail). Seven corridors were initially proposed and approved by the MTA Board as part of this implementation phase. These 7 locations were implemented by April 2022. Next, staff are proposing 45 additional corridors for legislation in Summer 2022.   

Citywide map showing proposed 20 miles per hour business activity district corridors

Slowing Speeds on Safety Corridors 

AB 43 will also allow cities to lower speeds by 5 mph on streets that are designated as “safety corridors” beginning in 2024. The state must develop criteria for defining safety corridor eligibility. SF is providing input on this state process to provide the additional flexibility to reduce speeds on streets that have the highest number of severe injuries and fatalities. In San Francisco, the High Injury Network shows that 75% of severe and fatal collisions occur on just 13% of city streets.  

Using the High Injury Network to inform Vision Zero projects such as speed management implementation helps Vision Zero SF center equity by prioritizing our most vulnerable communities. The transportation system should be safe for all road users, for all modes of transportation, in all communities and for people of all incomes, races and ethnicities, languages, ages, abilities, and housing status. Over half of High Injury Network streets are in an Equity Priority Community, areas of the city that have been identified as disadvantaged or vulnerable through factors such as households with low-income, high levels of seniors, people who have limited English proficiency, people with disabilities, and more. 

Project Status 

As of January 2022, the SFMTA is quickly implementing speed limit reductions on business activity districts. The first 7 corridors approved for speed limit reductions are fully implemented as of April 2022: 

  1. San Bruno Avenue, from Silver to Paul avenues: Implemented January 2022 
  2. Polk Street, from Filbert to Sutter streets: Implemented January 2022 
  3. 24th Street, from Diamond to Chattanooga streets and from Valencia Street to San Bruno Avenue: Implemented February 2022 
  4. Haight Street, from Stanyan Street to Central Avenue and from Webster to Steiner streets: Implemented February 2022 
  5. Fillmore Street, from Chestnut to Union streets and from Jackson to McAllister streets: Implemented March 2022 
  6. Valencia Street, from Cesar Chavez to Market streets: Implemented March 2022 
  7. Ocean Avenue, from Geneva Avenue to Victoria Street and from Junipero Serra Boulevard to 19th Avenue: Implemented April 2022 

Phase 2 is currently under development and will include up to 45 corridors. Staff planned Public Hearings for these locations in March, April, and August 2022, and MTAB legislation in April, May, and December 2022. Implementation for Phase 2 locations began in Summer 2022 and will go through Fall 2023:

  1. Noriega Street, between 19th Avenue and 27th Avenue: Implemented May 2022
  2. Noriega Street, between 30th Avenue and 33rd Avenue: Implemented May 2022
  3. Balboa Street, between 3rd Avenue and 7th Avenue: Implemented June 2022
  4. Geneva Avenue, between Gloria Court and Paris Street: Implemented June 2022
  5. 3rd Street, between Williams Avenue and Evans Avenue: Implemented June 2022
  6. Market Street, between Castro Street and Franklin Street: Implemented July 2022
  7. Castro Street, between Market Street and 19th Street: Implemented July 2022
  8. Stockton Street, between Market Street and Bush Street: Implemented August 2022
  9. West Portal Avenue, between 15th Avenue and Ulloa Street: Implemented September 2022
  10. Divisadero Street, between Pine Street and O’Farrell Street: Implemented September 2022
  11. Divisadero Street, between Golden Gate Avenue and Haight Street: Implemented September 2022
  12. Mission Street, between Cortland Avenue and 14th Street: Implemented September 2022
  13. Balboa Street, between 33rd Avenue and 39th Avenue: Implemented October 2022
  14. Mission Street, between Foote Avenue and Silver Avenue: Implemented October 2022
  15. Clement Street, between 26th Avenue and 22nd Avenue: Implemented November 2022
  16. Clement Street, between Funston Avenue and Arguello Boulevard: Implemented November 2022
  17. Irving Street, between 27th Avenue and 15th Avenue: Implemented November 2022
  18. Irving Street, between 12th Avenue and 6th Avenue: Implemented November 2022
  19. 9th Avenue, between Lincoln Way and Judah Street: Implemented December 2022
  20. Diamond Street, between Chenery Street and Bosworth Street: Implemented December 2022
  21. Leland Avenue, between Bayshore Boulevard and Alpha Street: Implemented December 2022
  22. Chestnut Street, between Divisadero Street and Fillmore Street: Implemented January 2023
  23. Jefferson Street, between Jones Street and Powell Street: Implemented January 2023
  24. Union Street, between Steiner Street and Van Ness Avenue: Implemented January 2023
  25. Geary Street, between Mason Street and Market Street: Implemented February 2023
  26. Post Street, between Mason Street and Market Street: Implemented February 2023
  27. Powell Street, between Bush Street and Ellis Street: Implemented February 2023
  28. Columbus Avenue, between Washington Street and North Point: Implemented February 2023
  29. Cortland Avenue, between Bonview Street and Folsom Street: Implemented February 2023
  30. Grant Avenue, between Market Street and Filbert Street: Implemented February 2023
  31. Post Street, between Laguna Street and Fillmore Street: Implemented February 2023
  32. Stockton Street, between Sacramento Street and Filbert Street: Implemented February 2023
  33. Hayes Street, between Franklin Street and Laguna Street: Implemented May 2023
  34. Sacramento Street, between Spruce Street and Lyon Street: Implemented May 2023

Additional locations in Phase 3 will be proposed in 2023.

The Importance of Lower Speeds 

Image shows that if a person is struck by a vehicle driving 20 mph, there is a 90 percent chance that the person survives the collision, and a 10 percent chance that it results in a fatality. If a person is struck by a vehicle driving 30 mph, there is a 60 percent chance that they survive, and a 40 percent chance that the collision results in a fatality. If a person is struck by a vehicle driving 40 mph, there is a 20 percent chance that they survive, and an 80 percent chance that the collision results in a fatality.

While reducing speed limits by 5 mph may not seem like a lot, it can actually be the difference in whether or not someone survives a crash. Compared to the 20% chance of survival someone has being struck by a vehicle traveling 40 mph, a person has a 90% chance of surviving being struck by a vehicle going 20 mph. Lower speed limits make streets safer for all users: when drivers move more slowly, they give themselves more time to notice other drivers, cyclists, and pedestrians, and they contribute to a calmer, safer environment on the street.  

Speed Management: More than Lowering Speed Limits! 

Introducing lower speed limits across the city is a significant step forward in San Francisco’s progress toward Vision Zero. Data from peer cities like Seattle has shown that signage alone can lower driver speed and reduce the number of crashes. But San Francisco is committed to taking a holistic approach to speed management. Signage is one piece of this work, but the SFMTA is also focused on implementing street design improvements that encourage slower speeds and create safter streets for all. 

Learn more about SFMTA programs to create safer streets and encourage slower speeds: 

Promoting a Culture of Traffic Safety 

Vision Zero aims to engage people to first acknowledge that traffic deaths are a preventable problem, and then empower people to promote traffic safety through individual actions and behaviors that collectively build a culture prioritizing traffic safety. Education and outreach play an important role in raising public awareness, encouraging safer driver behaviors, influencing policy discussions, building community support to end traffic deaths, and are best leveraged when used in coordination with other safety interventions. 

Year-to-year survey results tracking brand awareness as a proxy for public support indicate an increasing number or residents are aware of Vision Zero SF. Public perception of the dangers of speeding is also trending in the right direction each year, indicating a sustained change in attitudes influenced by education campaigns, policy decisions, and engineering since Vision Zero was adopted in 2014. 

Speed management implementation will build on these efforts and pair education strategies to reach impacted drivers, residents, merchants, and neighborhoods using strategies such as multilingual outreach, targeted digital advertising, physical advertising on bus shelters and light pole banners, and more as funding permits. 

Thank You! 

Activists gather in the Tenderloin to unveil new 20 mph signs. They hold signs saying "20 is plenty" and "drive like anyone you love lives here"

The SFMTA is proud to implement the safer speed limits authorized by AB 43—and recognizes that the passage of this transformative legislation was the result of years of advocacy by WalkSF, SF Bike Coalition, San Francisco Bay Area Families for Safe Streets, and all the many citizens who wrote letters, called into hearings, and voiced their support on social media for safer speeds. We appreciate their commitment and the leadership of Assembly Transportation Committee Chair Laura Friedman, San Francisco co-sponsors former Assemblymember David Chiu and Assemblymember Phil Ting, along with Mayor London Breed and the Board of Supervisors. We stand committed to safer streets in SF and will work urgently to reduce speed limits to save lives. 

Contact Information
VisionZeroSF@sfmta.com