“When you get tired of walking around San Francisco, you can always lean against it.”

The quote is anonymous, but the sentiment is a familiar one for most San Franciscans. The resonance comes both from the hills, which often feel as if they’re leaning into you, and from the sense of community we have here. We pride ourselves on living in the world’s most beautiful, walkable city – and on having a citizenry that genuinely looks out for one another.

Which is why the release this week from Transportation for America is such an eye opener. In a classic example of Government 2.0, TFA has created an interactive map that lays out where pedestrian fatalities have occurred. Enter ‘San Francisco,’ and a troubling graphic of individual, clickable tragedies appears.

We’ve always known that too many people die each year in traffic related accidents in San Francisco – but now we know, and can see, exactly where and when. TFA Map Our challenge is to use this information to make our streets safer and prevent future tragedies. We can each do our part individually – by staying vigilant, looking both ways and not getting lost in the latest from @SFGiants (Buster Posey – ouch!) while crossing the street. But we should also find a way to use this data to identify dangerous corridors and make them safer.

For example, the block of Sixth Street between Market and Mission, where six people have been struck and killed in seven years. Or on Geary between Fillmore and Gough, where four elderly people were hit and killed in just three years. TFA’s map gives us new information about the safety of our streets – and with knowledge, of course, comes responsibility.

Log in and join the conversation. How do you think we should use this information to make our city safer?