Twenty percent of the city's roads — 679.1 miles — are candidates for slower speeds.
The San Diego City Council on Monday could take a major step in reducing speed limits on roads throughout the city, in order to meet its"Vision Zero" goal to eliminate traffic fatalities and serious injuries.
in February, uses a"data-driven, city-wide approach to lower speed limits across San Diego's neighborhoods, commercial corridors, and school zones," according to a city statement. "Every San Diegan deserves to feel safe walking, biking or driving in their community," said Councilman and Committee Chair Stephen Whitburn."This plan provides a clear roadmap to reduce dangerous speeds, protect lives, and build streets that work for everyone."In 2022, the U.S. Department of Transportation awarded San Diego $680,000 through the Safe Streets and Roads for All grant program, intended to bolster Vision Zero efforts to reducing crashes through safer street design, slower speeds, equitable access improvements, and community engagement. One of the initiatives funded was the Comprehensive Speed Management Plan. The city maintains 3,185 centerline miles — the length of a road sans extra lanes — of public streets, with another 842 under the purview of the city's engineering and traffic survey network State law mandates speed limits posted above 25 mph require an engineering and traffic survey, which entails measuring the 85th percentile speed — essentially the speed most motorists are already traveling. But that process doesn't account for streets with higher safety risks such as school zones, areas with heavy bicyclist and pedestrian traffic and commercial zones, officials said. Several new laws passed in Sacramento give cities greater flexibility to determine appropriate speeds rather than defaulting to 25 mph. Corridors with higher comparative fatal or serious injury crashes can see 5 mph reductions, as can areas with high pedestrian and bicyclist activity. Business districts can be reduced to 25 or 20 mph and school zones can reduce speeds to 15 mph or 20 mph within 500 feet of schools, and 25 mph between 501 and 1,000 feet on qualifying nearby approach streets, the city statement read. With these new permissions from the state, the city found more than 20% of its roads — 679.1 miles — are candidates for slower speeds.32.6 centerline miles eligible as high a pedestrian and bicyclist activity corridors;371.1 centerline miles eligible for school zone speeds ; and"The Comprehensive Speed Management Plan represents a significant step in aligning San Diego's speed limits with Vision Zero safety priorities," said Transportation Department Interim Assistant Director Margaret McCormick last month."The city has a clear and consistent framework to reduce speeds where they will make the most safety impact for all road users." Simply lowering speeds will not solve all of the city's problems, however. Reduced speeds need to be paired with"continued traffic calming improvements, intersection safety enhancements, street design changes, education and public outreach, and traffic enforcement," to reach Vision Zero, the city statement reads.'One Battle After Another' takes best picture. Here's the full list of Oscar winnersPentagon tightens controls over Stars and Stripes after calling it "woke" KPBS keeps you informed with local stories you need to know about — with no paywall. Our news is free for everyone because people like you help fund it.KPBS has created a public safety coverage policy to guide decisions on what stories we prioritize, as well as whose narratives we need to include to tell complete stories that best serve our audiences. This policy was shaped through months of training with the Poynter Institute and feedback from the community. You can read the full policy here.
United States Latest News, United States Headlines
Similar News:You can also read news stories similar to this one that we have collected from other news sources.
Utah State vs San Diego State Prediction, Picks & Odds for Today's Mountain West Championship GameOur college basketball predictions, picks, and odds for Utah State vs San Diego State in the Mountain West Championship game on Saturday, March 14.
Read more »
Padres Star Hopes to Bring Oakland’s Vibe to San Diego, and It Could HappenThe World Baseball Classic has been a festival of vibes—similar to games in Oakland. Padres star Manny Machado wants to bring those vibes back to San Diego.
Read more »
Spring Break season begins on San Diego beaches with out of town visitorsSpring break season begins on San Diego beaches with lots of out of town visitors. Lifeguards prepare for more crowds than last year.
Read more »
San Diego’s An’s Gelato prepares for landing at the Top Gun House in OceansideRanked by USA Today as the No. 1 ice cream in America in 2024 and 2025, An’s will open an airport-themed scoop shop in the historic cottage
Read more »
Newsom touts drop in homelessness, but San Diego faces shelter shortageDespite a statewide decline in homelessness, San Diego providers say a lack of beds leaves most people seeking shelter without help.
Read more »
City Council to consider lowering speed limits on roads throughout San DiegoCity News Service is one of the largest regional news services in the country, serving the Southern California region.
Read more »