FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Monday, October 6, 2025
CONTACT: Luke Bornheimer, Executive Director, Luke@StreetsForward.org, 617-899-4487 (cell)

Speed Cameras Reduce Speeding on Individual Blocks But City Must Help People Shift Trips to Walking, Biking, and Public Transit

Speed camera data shows reduction in speeding and average speeds, but City must install infrastructure and approve policy to help people shift trips  and make all streets safer

The data from SFMTA’s speed camera study is encouraging and shows that speed cameras are effective at reducing speeding on the individual block where a camera is installed. That said, there is little data to show that speed cameras decrease speeds much beyond the individual block where a camera is installed, and there is no data showing that speed cameras help people shift trips to walking, biking, and public transit, which is what the City must do to decrease reduce roadway crashes and injuries as well as decrease car traffic, noise, air pollution, carbon emissions and increase safety and economic vitality.

Given that the City is limited to 33 speed cameras for at least five years, Mayor Lurie, the Board of Supervisors, and SFMTA should focus on making it safer and faster to walk, bike and take public transit by installing protected bike lanes and transit-only lanes, and implementing a citywide No Turn on Red policy—infrastructure and policies that help people shift trips to walking, biking, and public transit. The City can also remove a driving lane—also known as a road diet—on the other 40+ streets that SFMTA evaluated for speed cameras but did not install cameras on, which would make for a good experiment to see what is more effective for reducing speeding, speed cameras or road diets. These solutions are proven to not only reduce speeding, roadway crashes, and injuries, but help people shift trips to walking, biking, and transit, which will reduce car traffic, noise, air pollution, and carbon emissions while increasing economic vitality, public health, and social connectedness.

If Mayor Lurie, the Board of Supervisors, and SFMTA want to decrease roadway crashes, car traffic, noise, air pollution, and carbon emissions and increase safety and economic vitality, they should be approving policies and infrastructure improvements—like protected bike lanes, transit-only lanes, and a citywide No Turn on Red policy—that are proven to help people shift trips to walking, biking, and taking public transit, in addition to decreasing speeding and roadway crashes, fatalities, and injuries.

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Streets Forward is a nonprofit organization making it safer and faster for people to walk, bike, and take public transit in San Francisco. It fulfills its mission through grassroots organizing, public policy research and education, and advocacy for infrastructure improvements and policies that are proven to help people shift trips to walking, biking, and transit, which increases roadway safety, among other benefits. Streets Forward was founded by its Executive Director, Luke Bornheimer, who successfully organized and advocated to make Car-Free JFK Promenade permanent, convert Upper Great Highway into a full-time, oceanfront park (Sunset Dunes), get curbside protected bike lanes installed on Valencia Street, the e-bike incentive fund approved, and a citywide No Turn on Red policy unanimously supported by the Board of Supervisors, among other successes. You can learn more about Streets Forward at StreetsForward.org.