San Francisco police cracking down on speed

SAN FRANCISCO – San Francisco police are offering details on the department’s new plan to crack down on speeding. 

The intersection at Geary Boulevard and Divisidero Street has all the hallmarks for speeding: multiple lanes east and westbound, fairly straight, and a light that drivers sometimes race to beat. 

Now, police say that intersection and nine others around the city will be getting extra scrutiny to get drivers to slow down.

Some intersections in San Francisco are notorious for speeding vehicles, including Mission and Ninth Streets. People living in the area say pedestrians have to pay close attention when crossing. 

“It’s pretty erratic,” said Dana George. “You really have to be aware when you’re crossing this intersection.”

San Francisco police say the department has already started a plan to step up scrutiny and enforcement at this intersection and nine other high-injury corridors to slow drivers down. 

Pedestrian advocacy group Walk San Francisco says speed kills, and anything the police can do to slow drivers will help save lives. 

“Speed is the worst and most dangerous driving behavior,” said Jodie Medeiros from Walk SF. “It is the cause of most of the crashes that we’ve seen in San Francisco. We’re happy that the SFPD is going to start really focusing on that most dangerous behavior.”

News about the latest enforcement effort with officers in person enforcing the speed limit comes as the city is installing 33 speed cameras at dangerous stretches of road. Walk SF says it’s all part of an overlapping network of enforcement aimed at protecting pedestrians, cyclists and even drivers.

 “This combination of SFPD and cameras working together, it really does show that San Francisco is a city where the city cares about the people coming into San Francisco, it wants people to walk and bike more, it wants to make the streets safe,” said Medeiros.

Some pedestrians say while they hope the added enforcement works, they’re unsure if it will have a lasting impact. 

“As long as they’re around, sure they’ll slow down. But I think they’ll go right back once they leave,” said George.

To combat the chance of only having a short-term impact, San Francisco police say their enforcement will come in waves to ensure consistent enforcement over a sustained period. Police say some plan components are already in place, others are still being implemented.