The morning of March 6, prior to a City Council hearing where the City Auditor presented its Pedestrian Safety Performance Audit, City staff released a memorandum providing an update to infrastructure improvements planned for 15 of the City's most dangerous intersections highlighted in the Auditor report.

There were several questions regarding how these intersections related to Circulate San Diego's "The Fatal Fifteen."

*Circulate San Diego’s intersections were determined based on the locations with the highest number of serious injuries and deaths, as reported by the City Auditor, with all of the intersections having at least 11 serious injuries. Some of the three infrastructure improvements had been made at these intersections, but none of the intersections had all three improvements.

*The City’s intersections were determined based on a separate dataset also provided by the City Auditor. These 15 intersections did not have any of the three improvements and had at least seven crashes at each.

The good news? Work is underway to make basic improvements at these intersections. For example, high visibility crosswalks were painted at the intersections of University Avenue and Marlborough, among others, as indicated in the memo. In comments made to the City Council at the March 6 hearing, staff from Stormwater and Transportation Department indicated they are working to improve up to 66 intersections. This is a welcomed change from previous inaction. 

We are very pleased to see that several improvements to dangerous intersections have already been made in recent months. and will continue to advocate for completion of these simple, modern improvements. Circulate San Diego’s intersections are the most dangerous, and should be the priority. To accomplish the goal of Vision Zero, the City’s decisions should be data-driven to reduce human harm. Some areas will receive more attention and investment than others, which is both necessary and appropriate.

Circulate San Diego urges and supports the City of San Diego fixing all 26 intersections identified by both the City and Circulate. However, to prevent injury and death, the 15 that Circulate identified should be the top priority. It is our goal and hope that improvements, such as high visibility crosswalks (known colloquially as ladder or zebra stripes) and countdown signals, can be provided at all 26 intersections, including locations within your district.

Download a copy of the City's memo here.

It was an exciting day when the Chula Vista Elementary School District (CVESD) was awarded the Safe Routes to School Grant in 2015. For over a decade, the district sought funding that would enable the City of Chula Vista to evaluate school neighborhood streets to make them safer for families to walk and bike. Through Caltrans grant, the district partnered with Alta Planning and Circulate San Diego to assess streets and intersections around the 27 schools in the CVESD, while bringing to life It’s Cool to Walk to School at four select schools. 

Circulate San Diego had a great time joining students and families at Chollas-Mead Elementary and the San Diego Police Department to celebrate Walk to School Day. Some families walked from home, while others met at a nearby location and joined the “Walking School Bus” to be safely guided to school by parent volunteers and officers.