San Francisco Examines Potential Speed Limit Reductions To Achieve Ending Pedestrian Fatalities
SAN FRANCISCO (KCBS)— San Francisco will consider lowering speed limits on city streets to as low as 20 miles an hour in some cases to achieve its goal of ending pedestrian fatalities.
In 2013, 21 pedestrians were killed on the city's streets, but according to City Supervisor Eric Mar, many of them would have survived had those motorists who hit them been driving slower.
San Francisco Examines Potential Speed Limit Reductions To Achieve Ending Pedestrian Fatalities
"Pedestrians being struck by a car travelling 20 miles an hour have a 95 percent chance of survival. At just 40 miles an hour, only 15 percent of the people hit by cars survive," Mar said.
Mar introduced a resolution asking the budget analyst to examine the effects of fast driving on fatal accidents with an eye toward dropping speeds five to 10 miles per hour, or even down to 20 miles an hour, which is already being done in New York, Paris and elsewhere.
"In Switzerland, reduction in speed limits has lead to savings of $120 million to $130 million as a result of fewer accidents," Mar said.
San Francisco's Vision Zero policy seeks to reduce pedestrian fatalities to zero by 2020.
