In two separate crashes, a 22-year-old has died and a 92-year-old received life-threatening injuries within three days of each other. The crash resulting in life-threatening injuries occurred while the pedestrian was in the crosswalk in Clairemont Mesa during daylight, according to the Watch Commander’s Log. The 22-year-old was walking through a parking lot on Villa La Jolla Drive when she was hit and killed on Tuesday, according to the Watch Commander’s Log.
“No loss of life is acceptable,” said Maya Rosas, Policy Director for Circulate San Diego. “The City of San Diego has taken important steps but more needs to be done to make our streets safe.” Circulate San Diego and a diverse coalition of 20 organizations have promoted a campaign for the last two years called Vision Zero, with the goal to end traffic deaths and serious injuries in San Diego by 2025. Mayor Faulconer and the San Diego City Council adopted a 10-year Vision Zero strategy in 2015.
The concept behind Vision Zero is that traffic deaths are preventable – through safe street design, education, and enforcement. The program has been successful in other U.S. and European cities. To date, 20 cities across the U.S. have adopted a Vision Zero goal. 2017 saw a decrease in pedestrian and all traffic fatalities but 2018 has seen a rash of pedestrians dying on our streets. No loss of life is acceptable and these pedestrian collisions show that more work is needed.