San Francisco Moves to Ban Right Turns on Red

According to an article in Streetsblog San Francisco by Roger Rudick, the San Francisco Board of Supervisors unanimously passed a resolution that moves to ban right turns on red in the city. “According to the MTA, turn-on-red crashes account for 20% of pedestrian- or bicycle-related injury crashes involving drivers turning at signal-based intersections.”

Supervisor Preston, author of the bill, said “This is another important step toward reducing traffic collisions and making our streets safer for pedestrians and cyclists.”

Right turns on red are shown to pose more danger to pedestrians and cyclists, leading to more car-pedestrian (or bike) collisions. According to advocate Luke Bornheimer, “The resolution simply calls for SFMTA to prepare a plan for a citywide policy, and SFMTA’s own evaluation showed that 92% of drivers complied with NTOR, close calls decreased by 80%, and drivers blocking crosswalks decreased 72% after SFMTA implemented NTOR at 50 intersections in the Tenderloin in 2021.”

Bornheimer adds, “No Turn On Red increases safety, access, and comfort for people, and drivers overwhelmingly comply even with traffic enforcement at historic lows,” calling it an “easy win” for street safety.

Right turns on red are banned in many countries with successful Vision Zero policies, as well as New York City.