A bicyclist and a pedestrian were killed in separate crashes in San Jose on Sunday, marking a setback for the city as it strives to make streets safer for everyone.
The pedestrian, a woman, was struck by a car near Snell Avenue and Capitol Expressway at about 10:30 p.m. Police said she was in a crosswalk but was crossing against the light.
Earlier in the day on Jackson Avenue near Bambi Lane, a cyclist was killed when he reportedly veered into traffic and was hit by a pickup truck.
In both cases, the drivers remained at the scene.
These mark the 32nd and 33rd traffic fatalities of the year in San Jose.
"Roadway safety is a shared responsibility really," police spokesperson Stacie Shih said. "Whether you’re occupying or driving a vehicle, a motorcycle, a bicycle, or on foot, everyone is responsible on following the rules of the road. Yesterday was a tough day. Lives were lost and in the end families are mourning the loss of their loved ones."
Data shows traffic deaths in San Jose reached a record high in 2022 but have declined since then. Twenty-three pedestrians were killed at this point in 2022. This year there have been 12.
The Jackson intersection near the Interstate 680 off-ramp where the bicyclist was killed is one of the many areas where the city said it has made improvements to increase traffic safety. That includes adding high visibility crosswalks, green bike lanes, and a so-called quick build median island along with reflective yellow borders on the traffic lights. The city calls it a quick build because it takes just 18 months to complete rather than the typical five years for a more traditional median.
All of this is part of the city's Vision Zero plan.
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"The goals are to slow down cars and to make people who are walking or biking more visible, to make it more evident of where they’re supposed to be on the road or on the sidewalk, make it clear where they’re supposed to cross the street and make them easier to see when they do cross the street," Department of Transportation public information manager Colin Heyne said.
The city said it wants to see five years of results before saying it’s a trend. City officials said they're also aiming to hire a new employee devoted to analyzing intersections and crunching the numbers before there were improvements and after to see what’s working and what else needs to be done.
