A first-of-its-kind effort to curb speeding is underway in California where a lawmaker is proposing to limit cars to 10 miler per hous over the speed limit. The proposed legislation involves mandating smart devices that automatically limit vehicle speed.
The Speeding and Fatality Emergency Reduction on California Streets (SAFER California Streets) package was recently introduced by California State Senator Scott Wiener (D-San Francisco). There are two Senate Bills: 960 & 961. In a press release detailing the bills, the Senator says they're designed to make California roads safer and accessible to all users.
CA Senate Bill 961
Senate Bill 961 requires changes to vehicles directly, including a first-in-the-nation requirement that all new vehicles sold in California install speed governors, smart devices that automatically limit the vehicle’s speed to 10 miles above the legal limit. SB 961 also requires side underride guards on trucks, to reduce the risk of cars and bikes being pulled underneath the truck during a crash.
CA Senate Bill 960
Senate Bill 960 requires that Caltrans, the state transportation agency, make physical improvements like new crosswalks and curb extensions on state-owned surface streets to better accommodate pedestrians, cyclists, the disability community, and transit users.
Senator Wiener says the changes are a head-on attempt to tackle vehicle fatalities, which are surging across the U.S.—and especially in California—amid a rise in reckless driving since the onset of the pandemic. The Senator cites a recent report from TRIP, a national transportation research group, that found that traffic fatalities in California have increased by 22% from 2019 to 2022, compared to 19% for the U.S. overall. In 2022, 4,400 Californians died in car crashes.
Wiener also says the rise in road deaths in the U.S. is a sharp contrast with reduced road fatalities across the developed world. He cites a recent investigation by the New York Times found that “if the U.S. had made as much progress reducing vehicle crashes as other high-income countries had over the past two decades, about 25,000 fewer Americans would die every year.”
Wiener says other nations are making progress to protect road users, while in the U.S. the problem grows steadily worse.
“The alarming surge in road deaths is unbearable and demands an urgent response,” said Senator Wiener. “There is no reason for anyone to be going over 100 miles per hour on a public road, yet in 2020, California Highway Patrol issued over 3,000 tickets for just that offense. Preventing reckless speeding is a commonsense approach to prevent these utterly needless and heartbreaking crashes.”
“Additionally, many state-owned roads across the state need to be improved to accommodate all users, including pedestrians, cyclists, motorists, and public transit riders. State roads — which are often main streets in smaller towns — should be safe for anyone wishing to walk, bike, or wait for the bus – and we can do a lot better by requiring things like crosswalks, bike lanes, rapid bus lanes, and safe bus stops. Instead of leading the rise in traffic fatalities, California should be leading the nation in reducing needless deaths on our roadways. The SAFER California Streets Package allows us to reclaim that leadership for a safer and more sustainable future.”
To read the rest of this proposal, click here.
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