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Planning Commission initiates hearing to fold Vision 0 pedestrian-safety goals into General Plan
Summary
The Planning Commission voted to initiate a public hearing on amendments to the General Plan that would embed the city’s Vision 0 traffic-safety policy into the transportation and urban-design elements and add objectives for pedestrian safety, multidisciplinary review, and high-injury corridor mapping. The hearing was scheduled on or after Oct. 6.
The San Francisco Planning Commission on July 7 voted to initiate a public hearing to amend the city’s General Plan to formally incorporate Vision 0, the policy adopted in 2014 that aims to eliminate traffic fatalities and severe injuries.
Planning Department staffer Lily Langlois described the proposal as an implementation action intended to “reflect the City's Vision 0 policy,” adding a new objective for Vision 0, updated pedestrian-network objectives and a multidisciplinary approach that combines engineering, targeted enforcement and education. She said staff has already flagged the city’s High Injury Corridor network within its parcel database and updated review checklists so streetscape plans are screened for safety concerns.
Public commenters and stakeholders urged the commission to make the changes sensitive to San Francisco’s topography and accessibility needs. Sue Hester, testifying for disability advocates, asked the department to account for hills and site-specific constraints for people who use wheelchairs and who have limited vision. Nicole Ferraro of Walk San Francisco recommended stronger, measurable language — for example, specifying an 800-foot maximum spacing for safe marked crossings in policy text and removing pedestrian “beg buttons.”
Commissioners raised enforcement and mode-separation concerns as practical challenges. Commissioner Moore said Vision 0 is a laudable idea that has not yet “created any additional amount of safety” and asked staff to sharpen enforcement tools and hardware solutions for new business models such as on-demand ride services. Commissioner Wu asked staff to include public comments from stakeholders in the next commission packet.
The commission approved the motion to initiate and schedule a public hearing on or after Oct. 6 by unanimous vote. Staff indicated the intent is to bring a full adoption hearing after additional outreach and packet materials are prepared.
