BLA says traffic crashes cost SF about $2.5 billion over five years; departments and advocates call for new Vision Zero policy

The Land Use and Transportation Committee of the San Francisco Board of Supervisors held a May 19 hearing on street safety and the economic impacts of traffic collisions, receiving a report from the Budget and Legislative Analyst (BLA), presentations from the Department of Public Health (DPH), the San Francisco Municipal Transportation Agency (SFMTA) and the San Francisco Police Department (SFPD), and testimony from community groups and residents urging a renewed Vision Zero policy.

Fred Brusso of the BLA said the office used a national National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) methodology to estimate unreported crashes and translate national cost categories to San Francisco. Using reported crash data and the NHTSA adjustment ratios, the BLA estimated 92,799 total crashes in San Francisco between 2018 and 2022 (including unreported events) and total economic costs of roughly $2.14 billion for that period, which the office adjusted to about $2.5 billion through 2024 to reflect cost-of-living changes. The BLA also identified city settlements and…