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SFFD raises safety concerns about parking-protected bike lanes, recounts cliff rescues and active‑shooter response
Summary
Chief Joanne Hayes White told the Fire Commission the department supports many bike‑lane projects but has 'huge concerns' about parking‑protected lanes directly under overhead wires because they can impede apparatus; the chief also described recent active‑shooter response, a Lands End cliff fatality and increased cliff rescues, and outlined training and equipment updates.
SAN FRANCISCO — At the June 28 San Francisco Fire Commission meeting, Chief Joanne Hayes White emphasized operational safety concerns tied to street design and recent rescue work, and commissioners discussed potential responses and interagency coordination.
Hayes White said the department has broadly supported roughly 95 percent of proposed bike‑lane projects but warned that parking‑protected bike lanes routed directly beneath overhead wires “make it very difficult and dangerous for first responders.” She described efforts to work with the San Francisco Municipal Transportation Agency and other planners to reach compromises and to provide input earlier in project design. Hayes White cited Seventh and Eighth streets as examples where adjustments were made that did not involve overhead wires and were workable for fire apparatus.
Commissioners asked whether the department has published standards for acceptable configurations. Hayes White said fire code and street‑width parameters are defined and that the department has gained some success being brought into the planning process earlier, but that some proposed design concepts — including a wider, bidirectional bike lane that might accommodate vehicles — had not been well received by MTA.
Hayes White also recounted recent field incidents that have demanded department resources. She described an active‑shooter incident that required coordination with the San Francisco Police Department and sheriff’s department and said the department’s stress unit and debriefings were involved. Separately, Hayes White described a recent cliff fatality at Lands End and said the department worked with the National Park Service and its beach patrol in rescue and recovery operations. She said increases in rescues in those areas have prompted discussion about better signage, more patrols and other measures by the National Park Service.
Deputy Chief Ramona Williams reported that two new cliff‑rescue units are in service at Stations 14 and 19, and that aerial truck ladder bids have been received and are under evaluation. Williams said training activity is ongoing, including pump and aerial testing and safety‑investigation team training, and that the department has a safety team structure for investigating serious injuries or line‑of‑duty deaths.
Commissioners praised departmental participation in community events and requested future briefings on cliff‑rescue techniques and on an industrial hygienist’s forthcoming work to address injury rates. The commission also discussed inviting the industrial hygienist, Anthony Boone, to make a presentation at a future meeting.
Hayes White said the department remains engaged with MTA and other agencies to try to ensure street‑design decisions both protect vulnerable road users and allow first responders to operate safely. Commissioners asked for continued updates as MTA moves forward on bike‑lane projects and as National Park Service and other partners consider changes to signage or patrols at Lands End.
