Driver Runs Red, Hits Cyclist, Speeds Off

A hit-and-run motorist ran a red light and smashed into a cyclist at 8th and Mission on Wednesday. Another cyclist captured the incident from a helmet camera and posted the video on Reddit, which was later picked up by KRON4:

The crash happened at the end of a protected bike lane that was installed as part of SFMTA’s 7th and 8th Avenue Safety project. However, the intersection is not protected, making this type of crash likely.

In this case, thankfully, the cyclist did not appear to be badly hurt, but that was a matter of quick reactions and blind chance. Had the bicyclist been a half-pedal stroke farther along, it could easily have been severe or fatal.

Further description of the incident via Reddit:

As the Mercedes reaches the corner of 8th and Mission streets, he makes an illegal right turn against the light — right into the path of a cyclist riding lawfully in the bike lane.

And:

In the video the cyclist can be seen skidding on his brakes as he attempts to avoid colliding with the car. The driver of the Mercedes, who has veered out of his lane onto the inside of the bike path, ignores the [collision with the] cyclist and speeds off down the road without stopping.

District 6 Supervisor Matt Dorsey commented about the incident on social media:

“We are experiencing an epidemic of hit-and-run collisions here in San Francisco – at least three pedestrian deaths in 2026 so far were caused by hit-and-runs, including one just this week on South Van Ness where a pedestrian was killed on the sidewalk,” wrote the San Francisco Bicycle Coalition’s Christopher White, in an email to Streetsblog. “We need immediate interventions to curb reckless drivers, like expanded automated speed camera and red light camera coverage along the High Injury network, along with more ambitiously implementing life-saving traffic calming measures already laid out in the Biking and Rolling Plan.”

Fair enough, and we definitely need more red light and speed cameras, but in this case, it’s unclear how red-light cameras or other soft enforcement would have helped in an immediate sense. As is clear in the lead photo and the video, the red arrow for the driver was clearly illuminated. This driver just chose to ignore the law. The problem with red lights, signs, and fines is that they still ultimately depend on a driver’s voluntary compliance; there’s nothing to force the driver to be safe. On the other hand, a protected intersection with a concrete, protected island at the corner would force drivers to take the turn slowly or risk damaging their car. Ideally, that corner island would also have a cast-iron bell or bollard to physically stop the car if the driver is egregious.

“A lack of a protected intersection enables something like this to happen,” agreed Streets Forward’s Luke Bornheimer. “This is exactly why protected intersections exist.”

Bornheimer also points out that the city needs to consider close calls such as this one as seriously as it does fatal crashes, because it indicates a dangerous condition that has to be corrected. Streetsblog reached out to several staffers at SFMTA for comment. The agency did not respond.

“There’s no excuse for the city not installing protected intersections when they’re doing protected bike lanes,” he added.

It’s not as if protected intersections are unfamiliar to SFMTA. There are now many in the Bay Area, such as the one pictured above in Oakland. Moreover, one of the first ones in the Bay Area was built in San Francisco back in 2016, at 9th and Division. More have been built since. But for reasons that remain unclear, SFMTA doesn’t seem to use them as the default. They must do so if they want to make the city safe.

“Road infrastructure also plays an important role in safer streets,” added Dorsey. “I live on this block and have personally experienced dangerous conditions here. I always welcome opportunities to improve our street design.”