TO: HONORABLE MAYOR
AND CITY COUNCIL
FROM: John Ristow
SUBJECT: 2025 VISION ZERO
ACTION PLAN
DATE: February 3, 2025
Approved
Date:
2/10/2025
COUNCIL DISTRICT: Citywide
RECOMMENDATION
(a) As recommended by the Vision Zero Task Force on December 16, 2024, approve the 2025 Vision Zero Action Plan.
(b) Adopt a resolution dissolving the Vision Zero Task Force and directing the Transportation and Environment Committee to oversee Vision Zero efforts within the City.
SUMMARY AND OUTCOME
The 2025 Vision Zero Action Plan (Action Plan) builds upon the 2020 Vision Zero Action Plan, furthering San José’s commitment to eliminating traffic collisions that result in roadway users being killed or severely injured (KSI) through data-driven strategies, community engagement, and alignment with national best practices (Attachment A - 2025 Vision Zero Action Plan). The Action Plan adheres to federal Safe Streets and Roads for All grant requirements and adopts the U.S. Department of Transportation’s Safe System Approach, which is the guiding paradigm to address roadway safety, introduced at the program level in California in 2020 by Caltrans
1. The Action Plan sets
an ambitious goal to reduce KSI by 30% by 2030 with the goal of eliminating all KSI by 2040.
1 Making Our Roads Safer through a Safe System Approach: https://highways.dot.gov/sites/fhwa.dot.gov/files/2021- 12/PR-WIN22_Book_full_508_revised2.pdf.
COUNCIL AGENDA: 2/25/25
FILE: 25-151
ITEM: 5.1
HONORABLE MAYOR AND CITY COUNCIL
February 3, 2025
Subject: 2025 Vision Zero Action Plan
The 2025 Action Plan is centered around five Priority Action Areas.
1. Prioritize Equity and Vulnerable Road Users;
2. Center Data Analytics and Reporting;
3. Strategize Traffic Enforcement;
4. Engineer for Safety; and
5. Engage the Community and Message Safety.
San José will continue the Quick Build Priority Safety Corridor redesigns that were the largest area of program investment in the five years since the 2020 Action Plan was approved by the City Council. Since establishing the Quick Build Priority Safety Corridor redesign team in 2020, over $4 million has been spent on approximately 20 miles of Quick Build improvements on the streets with the highest concentrations of fatal and severe injury crashes.
An additional $26 million is required to complete Quick Build redesign for the remaining 2023 Priority Safety Corridors, and an additional $6 million is needed to implement Walk Safe San José: Pedestrian Safety Plan Quick Build improvements. The estimated costs to deliver the short-term projects and strategies identified within the five Priority Action Areas of the 2025 Action Plan is approximately $80 million.
BACKGROUND
San José adopted the Vision Zero concept in 2015, becoming the fourth city in the United States to commit to eliminating KSI in response to a nationwide trend of increased traffic fatalities. By coordinating infrastructure improvements, enforcement strategies, and community engagement, Vision Zero advances the goal of a transportation system in which no loss of life is acceptable. Since San José established the Vision Zero Program and created the 2020 Action Plan, nationwide KSI numbers have steadily increased, especially during the pandemic. Although every death is a tragedy, fatalities in San José have decreased in recent years, from 65 in 2022 to 49 in 2023 and 2024. San José’s major accomplishments over the first 10 years of Vision Zero (2015-2024) can be found in Attachment B - Vision Zero in San Jose: 10 Years of Accomplishments. The 2025 Action Plan builds upon San José’s commitment to reduce, and eventually eliminate, the most serious traffic crashes.
ANALYSIS
The 2025 Action Plan introduces significant updates since the previous 2020 Action Plan, as well as initiatives aimed at creating safer streets for all while prioritizing equity, vulnerable road users, and systemic safety improvements.
HONORABLE MAYOR AND CITY COUNCIL
February 3, 2025
Subject: 2025 Vision Zero Action Plan
An overview of the 2025 Action Plan’s updates and new priorities are organized into the following subsections.
A. New Elements in the 2025 Action Plan
B. Strategy and Project Selection
A. New Elements in the 2025 Action Plan
The 2025 Action Plan is San José’s fourth Action Plan and the second to include a funding needs analysis. The 2025 Action Plan key updates include:
1. Federal Grant Compliance: The Action Plan aligns with U.S. Department of Transportation’s Safe Streets and Roads for All grant requirements to ensure eligibility and adherence to national standards.
2. Leadership Commitment and Goal Setting: Through collaboration with stakeholders, proactive policies, and a commitment to equity, the 2025 Action Plan aims to reduce KSI 30% by 2030, with the ultimate goal of eliminating these crashes by 2040. Figure 1 below shows a 68% increase in KSI over the last 10 years in San José (up from 157 in 2014 to 263 in 2023). Therefore, a 30% reduction is an ambitious goal, as U.S. Department of Transportation requires.
Figure 1: San José Fatal and Severe Injuries Crash Data (2014 - 2023)
3. Shift in Oversight: Vision Zero oversight will transition from the Vision Zero Task Force to the Transportation and Environment Committee, with additional guidance and stakeholder engagement through the Bicycle and Pedestrian Advisory Committee.
4. Safe System Approach: The plan changes from the traditional “E’s” model (engineering, education, enforcement, engagement, and evaluation) to the Safe
HONORABLE MAYOR AND CITY COUNCIL
February 3, 2025
Subject: 2025 Vision Zero Action Plan
System Approach, which emphasizes systemic safety improvements to reduce crash severity and protect all road users. Figure 2 below illustrates key differences in the two model approaches.
Figure 2: The Safe System Approach vs. Traditional Road Safety Practices
Traditional E’s Approach Safe System Approach
Prevent crashes → Prevent deaths and severe injuries
Improve human behavior → Design for human mistakes/limitations Control speeding → Reduce system kinetic energy
Individuals are responsible → Share responsibility
React based on crash history → Proactively identify and address risks
5. Expanded Priority Safety Corridors: The 2023 Priority Safety Corridor network includes nearly double the mileage of the previous Priority Safety Corridor network, addressing more high-risk roadways based on injury crash data (Attachment C - Priority Safety Corridor).
6. Priority Action Areas: Strategy and Project Selections: Using data analysis, best practices, and stakeholder input, the City developed five Priority Action Areas, each with objectives, deliverables, and a project list. Each deliverable is assessed and categorized into short-, mid-, and long-term delivery timeframes.
7. Greater Emphasis on Implementation: Leveraging data inventory and analysis tools developed since 2020, the plan places a stronger emphasis on addressing severe injuries and supporting vulnerable road users, ensuring a targeted and effective response.
These updates reflect San José’s continued commitment to creating safer streets through innovation, equity, and collaboration. The 2025 Action Plan includes a comprehensive safety analysis to identify crash trends, high-risk locations, and contributing factors (Attachment D - Safety Analysis).
B. Strategy and Project Selection
The Strategy and Project Selection section provides a comprehensive array of interventions designed to address San José’s most critical traffic safety challenges.
Key Safety Initiatives and Legislative Actions: The City has implemented key initiatives and legislative actions to address its two primary traffic safety challenges: (1)
HONORABLE MAYOR AND CITY COUNCIL
February 3, 2025
Subject: 2025 Vision Zero Action Plan
protecting vulnerable road users, including pedestrians and cyclists, and (2) mitigating the impact of speeding, a leading known cause of fatalities and severe injuries.
1. Implementing Walk Safe San José: Pedestrian Safety Plan: With pedestrians being the top fatality group by street user type each of the past twelve years, creating a plan to reduce pedestrian fatalities was central to the 2020 Action Plan.
The Walk Safe San José: Pedestrian Safety Plan, completed in 2024, focused on improving pedestrian safety and mobility in priority areas throughout San José.
2. Advancing Speed Safety Through Policy, Awareness, and Enforcement: San José is leveraging legislative tools and public outreach to address speeding.
Through policies such as Assembly Bills 43 and 645 and initiatives like the “Slow Down, San José” campaign, the City is implementing data-driven strategies to address speeding and enhance road safety. These efforts reflect a multifaceted approach that combines speed management, enforcement, and public education to create safer streets for all.
Five Priority Action Areas: Achieving Vision Zero’s goal requires a sustained long- term commitment. Using data analysis, best practices, and stakeholder input, the City developed five Priority Action Areas, each with objectives, deliverables, and a project list. The objectives, deliverables, projects, strategies, and timelines for each of these priorities are detailed in the 2025 Action Plan (Attachment E - Priority Action Areas).
Each priority has an associated high level estimated funding need below.
Priority Action Area 1: Prioritize Equity, Vulnerable Road Users: Equity is at the heart of Vision Zero. Most of the Priority Safety Corridors travel through parts of San José identified as Equity Priority Communities. The Metropolitan Transportation Commission notes that these census tracts “have a significant concentration of underserved populations, such as households with low incomes and people of color.” The strong correlation between these underserved neighborhoods and streets with a history of high traffic fatalities and severe injuries demands focused action to improve traffic safety for these communities.
Below identifies potential short-term funding need to achieve Priority Action Area 1.
Delivery
Cost
On-going
Cost
Total
5-Year Cost
Short (under 2 years) $20,000,000 $200,000 $20,200,000
Priority Action Area 2: Center Data Analytics, Report Metrics: Data analytics play a critical role in understanding and addressing traffic safety issues effectively. This focuses on leveraging data to enhance accountability, evaluate project outcomes, and guide evidence-based safety strategies. The City will build upon the data work from the past five years, continuing to use data in decision-making processes to ensure that
HONORABLE MAYOR AND CITY COUNCIL
February 3, 2025
Subject: 2025 Vision Zero Action Plan
projects and strategies are informed by real-time, actionable insights. The objectives, deliverables, projects, strategies, and timelines are detailed in the 2025 Action Plan.
Below identifies potential short-term funding need to achieve Priority Action Area 2.
Delivery
Cost
On-going
Cost
Total
5-Year Cost
Short (under 2 years) $1,200,000 $1,200,000 $2,400,000
Priority Action Area 3: Strategize Traffic Enforcement: This Priority Action Area focuses on addressing the top three known violations leading to fatal and severe injuries: speeding, unsafe turn movements, and red light running. A key initiative under this action area is the implementation of automated enforcement programs, including the Speed Safety System Pilot authorized by Assembly Bill 645 and a red-light camera pilot. The speed safety camera program will deploy 33 camera systems over five years, while the red-light camera pilot will target four high-risk intersections for one year. These programs aim to reduce crash severity and improve compliance with traffic laws. Their effectiveness will be assessed through before-and-after studies to guide future decisions on automated enforcement.
Below identifies potential short-term funding need to achieve Priority Action Area 3.
Delivery
Cost
On-going
Cost
Total
5-Year Cost
Short (under 2 years) $3,100,000 $4,600,000 $7,700,000
Priority Action Area 4: Engineer for Safety: Engineering improvements are essential to creating safer, more accessible streets for all users. San José’s 2025 Action Plan emphasizes the urgent need to deliver more safety projects, more efficiently. A key focus is the implementation of the Vision Zero Quick Build Program, using temporary, low-cost interventions that can be rapidly deployed and tested in high-injury areas.
These Quick Build projects, such as pedestrian safety upgrades and protected intersections, help reduce crash risk and serve as models for future permanent improvements. However, the goal is to transition these Quick Builds to permanent solutions using durable materials after conducting before-and-after project evaluations, ensuring that the most effective interventions are fully integrated into the City’s infrastructure. This Priority Action Area underscores the importance of quick implementation, continuous evaluation, and strategic investment in engineering solutions that protect all road users, from pedestrians to drivers.
HONORABLE MAYOR AND CITY COUNCIL
February 3, 2025
Subject: 2025 Vision Zero Action Plan
Below identifies potential short-term funding need to achieve Priority Action Area 4.
Delivery
Cost
On-going
Cost
Total
5-Year Cost
Short (under 2 years) $28,000,000 $15,500,000 $43,500,000
Priority Action Area 5: Engage the Community, Message Safety: Community engagement and education are central to building awareness and fostering a culture of safety. This Priority Action Area builds on existing programs, such as safety education in the Walk N’ Roll program and continues to expand efforts to raise traffic safety awareness. The City will engage the community through campaigns like “Slow Down, San José” and the promotion of Street Safety Awareness months, focusing on distracted driving, pedestrian safety, and visibility during darker months. The City will also focus on educating the public about the purpose and benefits of newly implemented safety projects and pilots, such as the Speed Safety System Pilot, ensuring that community members understand how these changes will improve their safety. The objectives, deliverables, projects, strategies, and timelines are detailed in the 2025 Action Plan.
Below identifies potential short-term funding need to achieve Priority Action Area 5.
Delivery
Cost
On-going
Cost
Total
5-Year Cost
Short (under 2 years) $2,400,000 $3,600,000 $6,000,000
EVALUATION AND FOLLOW-UP
San José Vision Zero is committed to maintaining transparency and accountability by tracking and publicly sharing progress toward eliminating traffic KSI.
To facilitate ongoing transparency, interactive dashboards will be available on the Vision Zero website, allowing residents and stakeholders to view data on progress and project accomplishments. These dashboards will serve as a central resource for tracking the City’s Vision Zero achievements and understanding the beneficial impact of Vision Zero initiatives on community safety.
Regular updates will also be presented twice annually to the Transportation and Environmental Committee and the Bicycle and Pedestrian Advisory Committee, ensuring that both City leadership and community representatives can provide direct input on recent data and project milestones. Additionally, San José Vision Zero will perform one-year and two-year before-and-after evaluations of completed safety projects to measure effectiveness in reducing traffic crashes.
HONORABLE MAYOR AND CITY COUNCIL
February 3, 2025
Subject: 2025 Vision Zero Action Plan
COST SUMMARY
The estimated funding required to implement the short-term projects and strategies in the 2025 Action Plan is approximately $80 million, with mid- and long-term projects increasing overall future funding needs.
Delivery
Cost
On-going
Cost
Total
5-Year Cost
Short (under 2 years) $54,700,000 $25,100,000 $79,800,000
COORDINATION
This memorandum has been coordinated with the City Attorney’s Office, the City Manager’s Budget Office, Planning, Building, and Code Enforcement Department, and Police Department.
PUBLIC OUTREACH
This memorandum will be posted on the City’s Council Agenda website for the February 25, 2025 City Council meeting.
Developing the 2025 Action Plan involved extensive public engagement and collaboration with stakeholders, ensuring diverse representation and meaningful input at every stage. The Vision Zero Task Force, which was established following the adoption of the 2020 Action Plan, led the planning process, and engaged members of the public, community groups, and interagency partners to incorporate comprehensive feedback from the greater San Jose community and to align Vision Zero priorities with other local and regional safety plans. The engagement timeline, announced in February 2024, provided Task Force members and the public with an opportunity to review and influence each phase of the 2025 Action Plan.
Key milestones included a draft discussion with the City Council in May 2024, followed by a public comment period from July to August. Public feedback was then reviewed and incorporated in October, including prioritization guidance, and further discussed at the Transportation and Environment Committee in November. At the October 2024 Vision Zero Task Force meeting, staff presented these public comments and conducted a prioritization exercise for the additional deliverables requested from public comments.
COMMISSION RECOMMENDATION AND INPUT
No commission recommendation or input is associated with this action.
HONORABLE MAYOR AND CITY COUNCIL
February 3, 2025
Subject: 2025 Vision Zero Action Plan
CEQA
Categorically Exempt, File No. ER24-313, CEQA Guidelines Section 15301(c) Existing Facilities.
PUBLIC SUBSIDY REPORTING
This item does not include a public subsidy as defined in section 53083 or 53083.1 of the California Government Code or the City’s Open Government Resolution.
/s/
John Ristow
Director, Department of Transportation
For questions, please contact Heather Hoshii, Deputy Director for Transportation Safety, Operations, and Parking, at [email protected].
ATTACHMENTS
Attachment A: 2025 Vision Zero Action Plan
Attachment B: Vision Zero in San Jose: 10 Years of Accomplishments Attachment C: Priority Safety Corridors and Focus Areas Attachment D: Safety Analysis
Attachment E: Priority Action Areas