In a disappointing yet not entirely unexpected move, San Francisco mayor Ed Lee has threatened to veto pending legislation that would change enforcement of specific traffic violations by cyclists.
I’m not willing to trade away safety for convenience, and any new law that reaches my desk has to enhance public safety, not create potential conflicts that can harm our residents.
— “Lee says he’ll veto legislation OKing rolling stops for cyclists.” SFGate.
One of the more frustrating parts of this is his statement that his statement that he is “…not willing to trade away safety for convenience…” This clearly indicates that either he doesn’t understand the motivations and safety data behind this legislation, or is intentionally phrasing his statement using language intended to persuade. In fact, all of the significant arguments in favor of such a change in traffic law enforcement are based primarily on safety concerns.
Currently 6 of the 11 members of the San Francisco Board of Supervisors have supported this legislation, with 1 against. The remaining are, at the time of this writing, undecided or have not yet publicly stated a position. If the mayor does in fact veto this legislation as stated, that veto could be overridden by a vote of 9 of the 11 supervisors.
Now is the time for the residents of San Francisco to make your opinions known on this issue, especially in the districts with undecided supervisors.Not sure what district you reside in? Check out the city wide map, or click on the District in the listing below.
The current district supervisors, their position and contact information:
In Favor
Eric Mar
District 1
(415) 554-7410 – Voice
(415) 554-7415 – Fax
[email protected]
Undecided
Mark Farrell
District 2
(415) 554-7752 – Voice
(415) 554-7843 – Fax
[email protected]
Undecided
Julie Christensen
District 3
(415) 554-7450 – Voice
(415) 554-7454
[email protected]
Unknonw
Katy Tang
District 4
(415) 554-7460 – Voice
(415) 554-7432 – Fax
[email protected]
In Favor
London Breed
District 5
(415) 554-7630 – Voice
(415) 554-7634 – Fax
[email protected]
In Favor
Jane Kim
District 6
(415) 554-7970 – Voice
(415) 554-7974 – Fax
[email protected]
In Favor
Scott Wiener
District 8
(415) 554-6968 – Voice
(415) 554-6909 – Fax
[email protected]
In Favor
David Campos
District 9
(415) 554-5144 – voice
(415) 554-6255 – fax
[email protected]
Undecided
Malia Cohen
District 10
(415) 554-7670 – Voice
(415) 554-7674 – Fax
[email protected]
In Favor
John Avalos
District 11
(415) 554-6975 – Voice
(415) 554-6979 – Fax
[email protected]
Ed Lee Photo Credit: By Mayor_Ed_Lee.jpg: Nancy Pelosi derivative work: Tktru (Mayor_Ed_Lee.jpg) [CC BY 2.0 (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/2.0)], via Wikimedia Commons