REPORT TO BICYCLE AND PEDESTRIAN ADVISORY COMMITTEE
SUBJECT
Title
Action to Recommend City Council Adoption of the Santa Clara Vision Zero Action Plan (He)
Report
BACKGROUND
Vision Zero is a strategy aimed at helping to eliminate all traffic fatalities and severe injuries, while also promoting safe and healthy mobility for everyone. The objective of developing and implementing a Vision Zero Action Plan is listed in both the City’s Bicycle Plan and Pedestrian Master Plan. In December 2023, the City Council received Safe Streets and Roads for All (SS4A) grant funding from the Federal Highway Administration to establish a Santa Clara Vision Zero Action Plan. The City Council approved an agreement with Kimley-Horn and Associates, Inc. for professional services for the Santa Clara Vision Zero Action Plan on May 28, 2024.
The Santa Clara Vision Zero Action Plan (Plan) kicked off in July 2024. This effort involved extensive community engagement and a thorough citywide safety analysis to identify the most frequent types, locations, severity, and demographics of collisions in the city. The Plan included development of a safety countermeasure toolbox, which includes programmatic measures and roadway improvements to address traffic safety issues. Additionally, the Plan identifies a priority list of potential traffic safety improvements and implementable actions to guide the City’s efforts in achieving Vision Zero.
The project has been presented to the Bicycle and Pedestrian Advisory Committee (BPAC) at four previous meetings:
• In August 2024, staff provided a project overview and the BPAC selected Member Kratz as the BPAC representative to serve on the Vision Zero Working Group, which guides the development of the Vision Zero Plan.
• In January 2025, staff provided a summary of collision analysis findings and the draft High-Injury Network (HIN). The HIN reflects the locations where the highest number of traffic fatalities and severe injuries occurred, and staff can use this HIN as a tool to prioritize future roadway improvement projects and update the City’s policies and guidelines.
• In March 2025, staff provided an update on collision profiles, draft countermeasure toolbox, and outlined preliminary Vision Zero actions and strategies.
• In June 2025, staff provided a list of priority HIN corridors, summary of proposed improvements along the priority HIN corridors, BPAC-focused actions and strategies, and presented the outline of the Draft Vision Zero Action Plan.
At the October 2025 BPAC meeting, the project team will present the overview of the project background and present the draft Vision Zero Action Plan.
DISCUSSION
Adopting a Vision Zero goal and approving the Plan will represent the City’s commitment to end traffic fatalities and severe injuries in Santa Clara, and allow the City to pursue future federal, state, and local grant opportunities for traffic safety infrastructure improvements. This Plan represents a multidisciplinary and collaborative effort in developing and implementing comprehensive solutions to address factors contributing to traffic-related collisions. The Plan development included extensive stakeholder and community engagement, and comprehensive collision data analysis, in identifying key safety concerns and strategies for implementation through near-, mid-, and long-term projects.
The full draft Plan <https://www.santaclaraca.gov/home/showpublisheddocument/88163/638947559642800000> is available on the project webpage (<http://SantaClaraCA.gov/VisionZero>) for public comment until October 19, 2025. Attachment 1 presents the draft Plan’s executive summary.
As required by the federal grant, the Plan includes the following key elements:
1. Leadership Commitment and Goal Setting
2. Strategic Planning
3. Collaboration and Community Engagement
4. Safety Analysis, Collision Profiles and Countermeasure Toolbox
5. High Injury Network (HIN)
6. Priority Projects, Policy and Programs
7. Progress and Transparency
Each key element is discussed below.
Leadership Commitment and Goal Setting
The Plan establishes a goal to eliminate all traffic fatalities and severe injuries on city roadways by the year 2050, and identified the following guiding principles of Vision Zero implementation:
• Safety of Human Life is Our Highest Priority
• Traffic-related Fatalities and Severe Injuries are Preventable and Unacceptable
• Vision Zero is a Shared Responsibility
• Community Engagement is Essential
Upon City Council adoption, the Plan will include the final resolution of Vision Zero policy and a cover letter from City leaders stating its official commitment.
Strategic Planning
During the project, the City formed a Vision Zero Working group consisting of City staff from the Public Works, Community Development, Fire and Police Departments, one BPAC representative, and external stakeholders including Santa Clara County, VTA, Cities of San Jose and Sunnyvale, Silicon Valley Bicycle Coalition, school district, Santa Clara University, and Mission College.
The Plan recommends continuing this Working Group collaboration to guide and advise Vision Zero program implementation and progress monitoring.
Collaboration and Community Engagement
The Plan’s development was informed by four phases of robust community engagement, including four community workshops with traffic safety item giveaways, three community surveys (with over 1,300 responses), pop-up events, a project webpage, project hotline and email, installation of Vision Zero street signs, and bus shelter advertisement. The community also provided location-specific feedback on an interactive map, which was taken into consideration into the citywide safety analysis.
Community input identified top safety concerns such as speeding and distracted driving; unsafe intersections and poor visibility; lack of protected bike infrastructure; non-compliance of traffic laws; safety in school zones; and need for more traffic safety education, enforcement, and traffic calming measures.
Safety Analysis, Collision Profiles and Countermeasure Toolbox
The Plan includes a thorough review of collision data from 2016 to 2023 (8 years), with the following key findings:
• 51 fatal collisions and 139 severe injuries, with an average of over 6 fatalities and 17 severe injuries annually.
• 35 percent of killed or severely injured (KSI) collisions involved pedestrians or cyclists.
• Vulnerable users, including youth, seniors, and those walking or biking, are disproportionately affected.
The Plan identifies the top nine collision profiles with recurring patterns that provide insights about why fatalities and serious injuries occurred in the city:
• Bicycle and Pedestrian collisions
• Driving Under the Influence of Alcohol or Drugs
• Speeding Drivers
• Night-time Collisions
• Off-Street Collisions (Pedestrian-involved collisions on the sidewalk or shoulder)
• Vehicles Running a Red Light or Stop Sign
• Turning Vehicle Conflicts at Intersections
• Collisions Involving Persons Under the Age of 18 or Over 60 Years of Age
• Pedestrian Code Violations such as Improper Crossing or Not Yielding Right-of-Way
The Plan also includes a Countermeasure Toolbox with proven engineering and programmatic strategies across the following six categories:
• Roadway Segment Improvements
• Intersection Design Improvements
• Traffic Signal Improvements
• Signs & Markings
• Speed Management
• Bicycle & Pedestrian Improvements
High Injury Network (HIN)
As part of Santa Clara’s commitment to Vision Zero, the Plan identifies a High Injury Network (HIN) to guide safety improvements where they are needed most. The HIN consists of intersections and roadways throughout Santa Clara which experienced a disproportionate number of injury collisions and fatalities. By focusing on these high-risk corridors, Santa Clara can make the biggest impact in reducing severe injuries and fatalities. Figure 1 in Attachment 1 presents the City’s HIN.
The HIN analysis revealed two key findings:
• Approximately 60% of all collisions in the study period (2016 - 2023) occurred on 16% of the roadways within City limits, including County expressways and El Camino Real.
• Many of the streets in the HIN are arterials, or streets that carry higher volumes of vehicles at higher speeds, including Caltrans and County-owned streets.
Priority Projects, Policy and Programs
The Plan identifies the top ten priority project locations along the High Injury Network (HIN) based on a combination of factors, including high concentrations of collisions, the severity of injuries, and community feedback on safety concerns. These locations represent areas with the greatest need for intervention and are the focus of targeted safety improvements outlined in the Plan:
1. Monroe Street: Lawrence Expressway to Bowers Avenue and San Tomas Aquino Creek Trail to Scott Boulevard
2. Lafayette Street: Central Expressway to Poplar Street
3. Coleman Avenue Tri-level Interchange: De La Cruz Boulevard from Central Expressway to Lafayette Street, and Coleman Avenue from Reed Street to the City of San Jose limit line
4. Scott Boulevard: Monroe Street to El Camino Real
5. Homestead Road: Lawrence Expressway to Kiely Boulevard
6. Stevens Creek Boulevard: Lawrence Expressway to Kiely Boulevard
7. El Camino Real: Halford Avenue to Scott Boulevard
8. Pruneridge Avenue: Lawrence Expressway to Kiely Boulevard
9. Scott Boulevard: Bowers Avenue to San Tomas Expressway
10. Montague Expressway: Lick Mill Boulevard to US-101
In addition to proposed infrastructure improvements, non-engineering actions and strategies are critical to the success of a comprehensive Vision Zero program. The Plan includes a list of policy and program recommendations to streamline and improve the process of implementing traffic safety improvements, enforcement, and educational outreach. Each recommended action includes a proposed timeline and performance measure for progress tracking.
Some key policy and process updates include:
• Update existing Neighborhood Traffic Calming Program
• Develop and implement a multi-department post KSI-collision review process to discuss safety improvements
• Prioritize projects and focus enforcement and education efforts on the High Injury Network
• Incorporate Vision Zero principles into City communications, staff training, data collection, and design review.
Progress and Transparency
The City is committed to ensuring progress, transparency, and accountability in the Vision Zero program implementation. Upon City Council adoption of this Plan, the City can pursue local, state and federal grants for infrastructure project implementation. The City will also produce annual reports on the program progress. Every five years or as necessary to meet grant requirements, the City will update the Vision Zero Plan to reevaluate the collision data and performance measures.
RECOMMENDATION
Recommendation
Recommend to City Council to adopt the Santa Clara Vision Zero Action Plan.
Staff
Written by: Nicole He, Associate Civil Engineer, Public Works
Reviewed by: Carol Shariat, Principal Transportation Planner, Public Works
Reviewed by: Steve Chan, Transportation Manager, Public Works
Approved by: Michael Liw, Assistant Director/City Engineer, Public Works
ATTACHMENT
1. Draft Santa Clara Vision Zero Action Plan - Executive Summary