EAG's Safety Program

EAG works hard to improve safety along the commercial corridor of the Excelsior neighborhood. We have held regular Safety Committee meetings and spearheaded safety projects since 2012. Our goal now includes Outer Mission and the Broad/Randolph commercial corridors continuing to ensure that those who live, work, shop, dine, travel, and socialize on the corridor feel secure. A safer corridor supports more outdoor activity, a healthy economy, and a sense of community. We focus on business and personal safety, pedestrian and bicycling improvements, better sidewalk and street lighting, quality of life issues, and providing resources to the community.

EAG needs your help to ensure that our neighborhood is safe and welcoming.  We cannot accomplish this alone—your participation will make a difference! Come to our next Safety Committee meeting, check out our Resource Page, or send Mel an email to find out how to get involved: [email protected].

Additional Resources

Safety Projects

Excelsior Safe Speeds

Be Seen, Be Safe

Pedestrian and bicyclist injuries and fatalities increase dramatically in low-light conditions. To improve the safety of those walking and biking after dark, EAG organizes events throughout the year to distribute free reflectors and bike lights to improve visibility to car drivers. 
The Excelsior Action Group (EAG) was awarded a grant to support the San Francisco Department of Public Health’s Community Health Equity and Promotion (CHEP) Branch on the Safe Speeds San Francisco Campaign, an initiative of Vision Zero San Francisco.
EAG provides local support to this campaign to call attention to the great need for traffic calming and speed reduction along our commercial corridors. EAG provides support through a community education and outreach project, Excelsior Safe Speeds.
EAG works in partnership with Walk SF and other organizations on the Vision Zero initiative in the Excelsior since 2014. Excelsior Safe Speeds continues that work focusing on the Mission Street corridor. Speed is the #1 factor in fatal and severe injury collisions in San Francisco and vehicular speeding is an ongoing issue on Mission Street through the Excelsior. In addition, there are a number of dangerous intersections along this portion of Mission, including a large number of unmarked “T” intersections, which present particular safety challenges. Finally, the Excelsior's many children and senior residents are at increased risk of serious injury in the event of a crash.
Collisions (particularly non-fatal ones) are rarely covered by the news media and therefore, their frequency and impact can be underestimated. The Excelsior Safe Speeds project works to combat this by highlighting current conditions on Mission and demonstrating the need for traffic calming along the corridor and at problematic intersections. 
Excelsior Safe Speeds focuses on physical design interventions. The design interventions initially are temporary in nature, and ideally remain in place for at least one month. They are designed to educate corridor users on traffic-related injuries and deaths that have occurred along Mission Street over the last five years. They include the following: ● Bright signage one pole per intersection to indicate the number of traffic collisions at that location   ● Placards posted nearby to provide more information and a narrative about the notable collisions. They also provide information on how to get involved with the Supervisor Office’s Working Group. ● Chalk paint lines on the ground direct people from the poles to the placards, when possible. ● Chalk paint markings in the street indicate the approximate location of the collisions. ● Installation of Excelsior community transit collision survivor stories at the Persia Triangle

Lights Out Walks

Increased lighting can make a significant dent in crime, but the city needs the public's help to spot and report broken street lights, which unfortunately are common. EAG organizes regular Lights Out Walks by meeting at our office just after dark and breaking into small teams to canvass the neighborhood and report street light outages to 3-1-1 for repair. To make it more fun, we sometimes head out after the event to grab food or drinks on the corridor and get to know each other. After all, knowing your neighbors is one of the best ways to improve community safety! 

Community Cleanups

EAG regularly partners with the Department of Public Works and the Giant Sweep program to organize quarterly community cleanups with volunteers from local schools and neighborhood groups, as well as residents and merchants. During these events, we sweep up trash and paint over graffiti. Cleaner streets create a sense of investment in place that can reduce the occurrence of future vandalism and littering. 

Shine a Bright Light on the Excelsior

The Shine a Bright Light on Excelsior (SBLE) program was a grassroots safety initiative of EAG, sponsored by PG&E.  The program goals were to promote safety directly on the Excelsior commercial corridor, educate merchants about crime prevention through environmental design concepts, increase the perception of safety, and enhance the environmental sustainability of businesses on the corridor through the provision of energy efficient lighting. The program involved the distribution of energy efficient light bulbs and educational posters for display in every small business on the Excelsior’s Commercial Corridor.