The city’s efforts to improve road safety have been outweighed by other factors such as larger vehicle sizes.
A report from the think tank Circulate San Diego outlines some of the reasons why traffic deaths in the Southern California city have risen in the past decade despite the city’s pledge to eliminate traffic deaths by 2025.
As Andrew Bowen explains, the rise in pedestrian deaths in San Diego “reflects a broader national increase, driven by factors like larger vehicle use, high-speed incidents, and insufficient street lighting.”
The report commends the city’s plans for street safety, but notes that it has not acted with enough urgency to make changes to its roadways. “Among the report's recommendations are a dramatic increase in spending on traffic safety infrastructure and greater use of "quick-build" projects, which modify a street's design using paint and flexible bollards rather than concrete and asphalt.” The report also recommends automated traffic enforcement as a more affordable and equitable solution.
FULL STORY: Report suggests bigger vehicles, slow construction timelines led to San Diego's 'Vision Zero' failure
How “Proven Safety Countermeasures” Save Lives
A bill named in honor of a U.S. diplomat killed while on her bicycle would let state DOTs access full federal funding for road safety projects.
Hoboken's $20 Vision Zero fix
The New Jersey city eliminated traffic deaths for the last nine years in a row.
'Dangerous by Design' 2026 report highlights 72% increase in pedestrian deaths since 2009
Although US traffic deaths dropped in the last two years, the number of people killed on US roads remains much higher than two decades ago.
The state-sanctioned urbicide of Austin
People don’t kill cities. Freeways do.
US to reduce Colorado River water deliveries to Mexico
A new Colorado Treaty amendment reduces Mexico’s Colorado River water allocation by 250,000 acre feet.
New Jersey’s second-largest city bans standalone data centers
Jersey City will continue to allow co-location facilities, such as those meant for research institutions that store their own data.
Amtrak not solely to blame for New Jersey commuter rail's unreliability, report finds
A new study from the Garden State Initiative found that NJ Transit’s budget grew 20% across a 4 year period, but reliability declined significantly over the same period.
EPA erases limits on planet-warming pollution from power plants
Under Monday’s plan, power plants would still have some limits on how much mercury, arsenic and other contaminants they can emit.
Phoenix announces new on-demand transit service, more frequent RAPID buses
Both new services will launch in October, and are part of Phoenix's Project Effective Access Solutions for Easing Congestion.
FREE Course: Walkable City 1: Why Walkability?
After describing his path towards focusing on walkability as the essence of good planning, Jeff Speck marches through his five principal reasons for making more walkable places.
Reinventing Malls: Planning Alchemy—Turning Gray Fields Into Gold
The course focuses on the opportunities and imperatives that shape reinvention of mall sites.
Eagle County Government
Harvard University Graduate School of Design
Nashville Planning Department
The Architects Foundation
University of Cincinnati Online
The Pocatello Development Authority
The Urban Renewal Agency of the City of Pocatello
Journal of the American Planning Association