Challenge

The San Francisco Municipal Transportation Agency (SFMTA) Residential Traffic Calming Program is a program that implements physical treatments in residential streets to slow traffic, thus increasing safety and quality of life in neighborhoods. Residents who are concerned about speeding apply for the program, and the City assesses traffic conditions on each street to determine which blocks demonstrate the greatest need for traffic calming. SFMTA sought a citywide evaluation of the program, wanting to determine effectiveness in reducing mid-block speeding and hear from residents of the neighborhoods that had been selected for the program so far.

Solution

Kittelson looked at before/after speed data on more than 800 streets where traffic calming measures had been implemented. We also looked at unique characteristics of these streets to determine which traffic calming techniques were most appropriate for different street and neighborhood conditions. Finally, we surveyed residents to hear about their experiences and how they felt the traffic calming initiatives had affected their neighborhoods.