Pedestrians and public health groups press DPH to speed high-injury network for Street Safety Act

Multiple public commenters told the San Francisco Health Commission that the Street Safety Act and Vision Zero require faster action from the Department of Public Health to finalize the high-injury network that guides street-safety projects.

Melina Mackey Kavada of WALK San Francisco said DPH's last published high-injury network is from 2021 and "this is holding back the SFMTA in determining which streets to consider for the next round of quick build projects." She urged commissioners to ask why the new network is delayed and what it will take to complete it as soon as possible.

Several speakers described personal and local impacts: Mission Bay resident Glynis Fowler recounted witnessing an August 2023 crash in which a child in a stroller died and said the Street Safety Act could have prevented that death; resident Vabuti said they had witnessed five crashes from their apartment window in two years, three fatal. Dr. Lolly Shiffman, a retired physician, testified from both professional and personal perspectives that unsafe streets increase emergency-room visits and urged the commission to support the act to prevent harm to seniors and people with disabilities.

Commissioners acknowledged the testimony. The presenters and commissioners agreed that DPH plays a crucial role in operationalizing elements of the Street Safety Act, particularly by updating the high-injury network that informs SFMTA prioritization.

Next steps: commenters asked commissioners to press DPH to complete and publish the new high-injury network and to explain how the department will coordinate with SFMTA and other agencies to implement the Street Safety Act's provisions.