San Francisco drivers warned to adjust habits ahead of speed-camera installation
Speed cameras are coming to the streets of San Francisco in the coming months that will automatically issue tickets that could cost drivers up to $500.
The officials with the San Francisco Municipal Transportation Agency say the goal is to change people's driving habits, and hopeful prevent accidents and save lives.
Street safety is one of Marta Lindsey's number one concerns. She lives in the Inner Richmond and works for Walk San Francisco, a non-profit that tries to make the city streets safer for pedestrians. Her home is near the intersection of Arguello Blvd. and Fulton St., where someone was killed in an accident just over a year ago.
"I had a close call myself at this very intersection about 10 years ago when I was pregnant. And now that baby walks to school down on Arguello so this is very personal for me," said Lindsey.
The Arugello and Fulton intersection will be getting one of 33 new speed cameras. Lindsey says it desperately needs it.
"Every day, more than a thousand drivers are going more than 10 miles an hour above the speed limit on Fulton," said Lindsey.
She looked at city data to get that number, but she also bought a speed radar gun to see for herself.
"43! Whoa! That person was going fast," Lindsey exclaimed as saw the speed of one vehicle as measured by her radar gun.
When the new speed cameras are installed, the registered owner of any vehicle captured going more than 11 miles an hour over the speed limit will receive a ticket in the mail.
The citation fee will vary based on speed. Tickets for driving 11 to 15 miles over the speed limit will be $50, with the fine going up incrementally to the maximum: $500 for drivers going 100 miles over the posted limit.
The citations will be a civil penalty and won't result in DMV points. Lindsey is confident slowing down can save lives.
"If you're hit at 25 miles per hour, your survival rate is pretty good. But by the time a driver is going 40 miles an hour, there's a 75 percent chance you are very, very injured or probably dead," explained Lindsey.
Shannon Hake with the San Francisco Municipal Transportation Agency told CBS News Bay Area the speed cameras have been in the works for years.
"After 14 years of advocating at the state level, we finally got a speed camera bill passed," said Hake.
The cameras used to be illegal in California, but in 2023, a bill was passed that allowed a pilot program for six California cities to try out the automated technology for a five-year trial. San Francisco will be the first to launch the program.
The SFMTA has launched an awareness campaign that includes billboards and digital ads to let people know the cameras are coming.
"We don't want anyone to get caught by the speed cameras, we want people to be aware of them and start slowing down," said Hake.
For the first 60 days of the program people will receive a warning with no fees. After that, they'll have to pay. The city will collect the data and compare it to areas without cameras to see if it makes a difference.
Drivers advocacy group the National Motorist Association is against speed cameras nationwide.
"The speed camera program in San Francisco is simply another revenue generation scheme disguised as a safety program," NMA Executive Director Jay Beeber said about the new SF cameras. "The vast majority of tickets will be issued to drivers on roadways with unreasonably low speed limits in relation to the speed the roadway was built for. For example, San Francisco is placing a ticketing camera on Harrison St. from 4th to 5th St. This is a wide, one-way road with four lanes, where the design encourages drivers to travel 35 mph to 40 mph but where the speed limit is 25 mph. In essence, the city has built a road to encourage driving speeds of 40 mph, set a 25 mph speed, and will then ticket drivers for doing exactly what they built the road to do. This is the very definition of a speed trap."
"It would be one thing if ticketing cameras were used to target truly dangerous drivers who are a menace on our roadways," Beeber added. "Unfortunately, this program, like the failed red-light-camera program, will target the minor violations of average folks simply trying to get around the city in a reasonable manner. We also believe that this program violates due process and equal protection laws and hope it is appropriately challenged in the courts."
Still, Lindsey remains hopeful that the cameras will make a difference.
"I think these cameras are going to go in, we're going to see the behavior change on the streets, it's going to be wonderful, we're going to see those crash rates go down," said Lindsey. "Then it's going to be time to pass more legislation so this program can expand."
All the cameras are expected to be installed and operational by mid-March of 2025.
