Speed safety cameras are a proven tool to address excessive speeding and reduce severe and fatal injury traffic collisions. With the passage of AB 645, San Francisco can now utilize this life-saving technology to slow down speeding vehicles on our streets.
Why is San Francisco installing speed safety cameras?
In San Francisco, unsafe speed is one of the most common primary collision factors in crashes that result in injuries. Speeding is dangerous for myriad reasons: a driver's field of vision is narrowed, reducing the likelihood that potential hazards can be seen and avoided, and drivers have less time to react and maneuver out of dangerous situations when travelling at higher speeds. Safely negotiating curves is also compromised.
It takes a vehicle a longer distance to stop for a hazard in the road the faster it is travelling. In the event of a collision between a vehicle and a pedestrian or bicyclist, the vehicle's speed will largely determine the survivability of the crash. A person hit by a car traveling 20 mph has a 9 in 10 chance of surviving while a person hit by a car traveling at 40 mph only has a 2 in 10 chance of surviving.
How many speed cameras are coming to San Francisco?
The state law allows a proportional number of cameras to the city’s population. For San Francisco, there will be 33 locations with speed safety camera systems.
Where will the speed cameras be located?
The law states that speed cameras can be placed on high-injury streets, in school zones, or on streets with a documented history of sideshows. In San Francisco, the cameras will all be located on the High Injury Network, the 12% of San Francisco streets that account for more than 68% of traffic-related severe injuries or fatalities. The cameras will be geographically dispersed among all 11 districts, in areas with a ride range of socioeconomic characteristics. The approved list of speed safety safety camera locations includes:
- 3rd Street from Key Avenue to Jamestown Avenue
- 7th Street from Harrison to Folsom
- 9th Street from Bryant to Harrison
- 10th Street from Harrison to Folsom
- 16th Street from Bryant to Potrero
- Alemany from Farragut to Naglee
- Bay Street from Octavia to Gough
- Bayshore Boulevard from 101 off-ramp to Tunnel Avenue
- Broadway from Powell to Stockton
- Bryant from 2nd to 3rd Street
- Cesar Chavez from Folsom to Harrison
- Cesar Chavez from Indiana to Tennessee
- Columbus Avenue from Lombard to Greenwich
- Embarcadero from Green to Battery
- Franklin Street from Union to Green
- Fulton from Arguello to 2nd Avenue
- Fulton from 42nd Avenue to 43rd Avenue
- Geary from 7th Avenue to 8th Avenue
- Geary from Webster to Buchanan
- Geneva from Prague to Brookdale
- Guerrero from 19th Street to 20th Street
- Harrison from 4th Street to 5th Street
- King Street (NB only) from 4th Street to 5th Street
- Lincoln from 27th Avenue to 28th Avenue
- Market Street from Danvers to Douglass
- Mission Street from 8th Street to 9th Street
- Mission Street from Ottawa to Allison
- Monterey Boulevard from Edna to Congo
- Ocean Avenue from Friday Kahlo to Howth
- San Jose Avenue from 29th Street to 30th Street
- San Jose Avenue from Santa Ynez to Ocean Avenue
- Sloat Boulevard from 41st Avenue to Skyline
- Turk from Van Ness to Polk
What speed will trigger a notification of violation?
The state law specifies this; any speeding 11 miles per hour or over the posted speed limit would trigger a violation. Notifications of violations will be mailed to the registered owner of the speeding vehicle within two weeks of the violation.
When will the cameras be turned on?
The cameras will begin issuing violations in early 2025. A timeline of the Speed Safety Camera program is shown below.
- Late 2023: Finalized data collection on the High-Injury Network to determine camera locations.
- Early 2024: Secured multiple project approvals through the SFMTA Board of Directors and the Board of Supervisors, including:
- Project-specific legislation: In order to select a single vendor for the design, construction, and operation of a camera system, the Board of Supervisors must approve an exception to the Administrative Code. This project-specific legislation enabled the project to pursue a DBOM (design/build/operate/maintain) contract.
- Surveillance authorization: In order to add a new type of surveillance technology in San Francisco, a System Use Policy and a System Impact Report must be approved by the Committee on Information Technology (COIT) and the Board of Supervisors.
- Approved Camera Locations: The MTA Board of Directors approved the 33 camera locations in March 2024.
- Summer 2024: SFMTA issued an RFQ/RFP in May 2024. SFMTA completed the procurement process and successfully negotiated a contract with the highest ranking proposer in September 2024. The SFMTA will bring the contract approval to the MTA Board of Directors in October 2024, subsequently kicking on the design and construction phase of the program.
- Early 2025: Construction concludes. A month-long public education campaign kicks off. Cameras are calibrated and tested.
- 2025: Once cameras are activated, the first two months of system operations will issue warning notices to speeding vehicles. After 60 days, cameras will begin issuing fines to speeding vehicles.