San Francisco, CA – San Francisco will soon implement speed cameras following Governor Newsom signing into law Assembly Bill 645, which allows six cities in California to pilot life-saving speed safety camera technology. Higher speeds increase the likelihood of severe injuries or fatalities when a collision occurs. Speed safety cameras have been proven to reduce speeding, collisions, and fatalities and are exactly the tools we need to make our streets safer.
This bill will become effective on January 1, 2024 and allows the SFMTA to install 33 speed safety cameras in San Francisco for five years. The Mayor’s Office will be working closely with the SFMTA to implement this pilot program as soon as possible. The law put in place a number of processes that must be carried out before any pilot city can begin use of speed safety cameras to ensure transparency, privacy, and equity.
“I am thrilled that the Governor signed Assembly Bill 645 to give us another critical tool to make our streets safer and save lives,” said Mayor London Breed. “Enforcement must be part of our work to make our streets safer, and speed camera can be a key part of that work. I would like to thank Assemblymember Laura Friedman who authored this legislation, as well as SFMTA and the advocates like WalkSF and Families for Safe Streets who fought for this bill’s passage.”
Over the course of 2024, SFMTA will be assessing potential locations based on the requirements of the law which only permit them on the City’s High Injury Network, in School Zones, or on streets that have a history of sideshows. The SFMTA will also be considering traffic collision data as well as input from traffic safety, privacy and equity organizations to determine where the cameras will be installed.
The addresses of the cameras will be included in a report that will be approved at a public meeting. When the locations are determined, the SFMTA will post the location information on their website and carry out a public information campaign 30 days before the camera systems are turned on to let folks know where they are located and when they are on. If you get a citation in the first 60 days, it will be a warning. There will also be signs alerting drivers when they are approaching a camera. The SFMTA will also be developing a Speed Safety System Use Policy which will lay out the rules and processes that will govern use of the system.
“AB 645 legalizes one of the most effective tools for advancing street safety - cutting fatalities by as much as 50% in cities around the world,” said Jeffrey Tumlin, SFMTA Director of Transportation. “We have been eager and ready to use this tool in San Francisco, and transparency will be at the forefront of our rollout.”
The pilot program centers equity considerations, including community stakeholder engagement requirements, ensuring the citation type and amount serves as a deterrent without being overly burdensome for low-income drivers, and a requirement to analyze the racial equity and financial impacts of the pilot program.
The new law ensures data privacy protections are in place to protect both drivers and residents of communities where cameras are located. Robust notice, signage, and warning requirements will ensure drivers are not caught off guard when entering a corridor with speed safety cameras, noting that the goal of this program is to change dangerous driver behavior, not generate revenue.
“While traffic safety is a citywide issue, we know our low-income communities have been most impacted by dangerous driving and severe collisions,” said Mayor Breed. “Only a third of our city’s streets run through historically disadvantaged communities, however, streets in these neighborhoods are almost twice as likely to be on the High Injury Network where the overwhelming majority of serious injuries occur. This speed safety camera pilot program will help keep people safe while being done in a way that is responsive to community concerns around equity and privacy.”
###