DA Hopes New Campaign Will Make Drivers and Pedestrians Not Hate Each Other

It's not hard

But it's the holidays, and District Attorney George Gascón is waxing optimistic. The DA today launched a new traffic safety campaign, hoping, at the very least, it will encourage drivers, cyclists, and pedestrians to get along during the holidays.

And if it works, maybe they'll stop killing each other.

See also: Cyclist Allegedly Leaves Comments Online About Accident After Hitting Pedestrian

Gascón's office created these thought-provoking ads, titled "What's the Rush?", which will be slapped on bus shelters as well as inside and outside Muni trains and buses during the month of December.

"The few seconds it takes for you to slow down could very well save your life and the lives of those around you," Gascón said.

The DA timed the campaign with the holidays, when the streets are even more packed with people, cars, and bikes. While pedestrian injuries and fatalities in San Francisco have declined over the last decade, we still have one of the highest per capita vehicle-pedestrian injury collision rate in the state.

In 2011, there were 17 pedestrian fatalities in San Francisco.

So here's what this Christmas campaign will remind you:

• Drivers should respect pedestrians' right-of-way, and avoid speeding, and put their cellphone away.

• Bicyclists should also obey the rules of the road. That means stop at a stop sign.

• Pedestrians really shouldn't be texting while walking or crossing the street -- remember the woman who fell into a fountain at a shopping mall while tapping away at her smartphone?

• No jaywalking. Pedestrians should walk at designated crosswalks and intersections

DA Traffic Safety Campaign
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