Mayor Lurie Celebrates 80% Decline In Speeding After One Year Of San Francisco's First-In-State Traffic Safety Program

SAN FRANCISCO – Mayor Daniel Lurie today marked one year of San Francisco’s first-in-the-state automated speed camera enforcement program, which has spurred an 80% decline in speeding at 33 locations across the city where cameras are currently installed. New data from the San Francisco Municipal Transportation Authority (SFMTA) shows that after one year, the program has helped significantly change driver behavior, reducing dangerous incidents of speeding and making San Franciscans safer.

The new data marks a significant milestone for Mayor Lurie’s Street Safety Initiative, a citywide effort launched last year make city streets safer for pedestrians, drivers, cyclists, transit riders, children, and seniors. In the initiative’s first 100 days, the city took significant steps on street safety, including publishing the new High Injury Network map and convening leaders from across agencies to coordinate citywide safety priorities. Public safety has been Mayor Lurie’s top priority, and crime dropped 25% citywide in 2025.

“Public safety has always been my number one priority, and it’s clear after one year that this program is making San Franciscans safer,” said Mayor Lurie. “We are leading the way for the entire state, with proven strategies and data to hold us accountable. And the results are clear: Drivers are changing their behavior to drive more safely, keeping children, seniors, and families all safer in our city.”

Mayor Lurie and the SFMTA launched automated speed enforcement in March 2025 as part of a statewide pilot authorized by AB 645. San Francisco was the first city in the state to activate the program and currently operates 56 cameras across 33 locations, the maximum allowed under state law, as part of strategy to reduce risk on city streets.

In addition to data collected by cameras, the SFMTA provides a quarterly study at various locations to capture a fuller snapshot of data to help inform change in driving behavior. Dangerous speeding remains low across camera locations since citations began in August 2025. Key results include:

• The share of drivers traveling 10 mph or more above the speed limit has dropped by almost 80% at camera locations, compared with before the cameras were installed.
• That change in driver behavior corresponds to 40,000 fewer instances of dangerous speeding every day.
• Of drivers who receive a citation, 65% did not receive a second one, suggesting significant behavior change among drivers. The data shows that 82% of drivers receive two or fewer notices.
• The share of drivers traveling more than 10 mph over the speed limit has dropped from 11% to 2% across all camera locations since the cameras were introduced.
• The majority of speed cameras are located near schools, senior centers, health or social service facilities, parks, libraries, and community spaces—ensuring that safety improvements serve the most vulnerable road users. The camera on Columbus Avenue—next to North Beach Branch Library and Joe DiMaggio Playground Park, where Mayor Lurie launched the speed camera program in March 2025—saw the biggest decrease in the city with a 98% drop in speed incidents.

Speed is the leading cause of severe injuries and fatalities on San Francisco’s streets, and even small reductions save lives. A person struck by a vehicle traveling 20 mph has approximately a 90% chance of survival, compared to approximately a 20% chance of survival at 40 mph.

“One year ago, we launched San Francisco's automated speed enforcement program with a simple but urgent goal: to save lives,” said Julie Kirschbaum, SFMTA Director of Transportation. “The data is clear, speeding is dropping where we have cameras, and we’re proud to lead California in this pilot. We thank Mayor Lurie for his leadership and will continue to work closely with city, state, and community partners to build on this momentum to ensure that every person in every neighborhood can travel safely.”

The automated speed enforcement program is designed to encourage drivers to reduce speeding rather than punishing them. Per state law, the pilot is designed as a cost-recovery program, meaning all revenue from the program is reinvested back into San Francisco’s street safety programs and infrastructure improvements, including rectangular rapid flashing beacons and other traffic calming measures that support safer streets and intersections citywide.

This reinvestment builds on SFMTA’s commitment to invest in proven safety treatments that have reduced pedestrian collisions by an average of more than 30%. SFMTA’s recently approved two-year $1.2 billion capital budget supports safety, connectivity, and community-benefit improvements, including quick-build projects, signal upgrades, speed limit reductions, and core intersection upgrades. Guided by the High Injury Network and community input, these investments are targeted where they will have the greatest impact.

“Every street in SoMa is on the High Injury Network, and the people who live here have to face that every day as they get around,” said Rudy Corpuz, Executive Director of United Playaz. “Speed cameras are getting drivers to slow down, respect our neighborhood, and make people safer. You can really feel the difference on SoMa streets with speed cameras.”

“Whenever I see a speed camera, I feel a sense of relief and gratitude. Because of speed cameras, fewer families will experience tragedies like what happened to mine,” said Jenny Yu, a founding member of San Francisco Bay Area Families for Safe Streets. Yu’s mother Judy was hit by a speeding driver 15 years ago in San Francisco. She suffered severe injuries and has required 24-hour care since the crash.

“Dangerous speeding is the number one cause of severe and fatal crashes in San Francisco,” said Jodie Medeiros, Executive Director of Walk San Francisco. “Speed cameras are a game changer, dramatically changing driver behavior to make everyone safer. San Francisco is leading the state in piloting this powerful, life-saving technology.”

The Street Safety Initiative employs a coordinated, systemwide approach to making San Francisco’s streets safer. Under the initiative, street design is a critical tool for reducing speeding and risk of dangerous incidents but must be paired with other strategies such as safe speed management, effective enforcement, and responsible road user behavior. This strategy also depends on strong state partnership to authorize and expand proven tools such as speed safety cameras and speed limit reductions.

“Speed enforcement cameras are proving themselves to be highly effective in reducing dangerous driving behavior and making streets safer for all of us,” said District 6 Supervisor Matt Dorsey, who plans to introduce a resolution next week affirming city support for the program and exploring strengthening it. “This is a life-saving technology we need more of—in District 6 and throughout the city—and I’m proud to stand with safe streets advocates in celebrating its success.”