Redwood City to improve Jefferson Avenue safety

“I am very excited about this change,” Councilmember Isabella Chu said. “These kinds of changes can reduce all crashes, this is going to improve everyone’s safety.” 

The approved project will include a “road diet” that will entail removing one travel lane in each direction between Farm Hill Boulevard and Iris Street, adding a center turning lane and either a bike lane or protected bikeway. 

It will also include adding rectangular rapid flashing beacons, or HAWK signals which are midblock crosswalk lights, at some intersections throughout the entire corridor. A protected bike facility will also be prioritized near Orion Alternative School, on the north side of Jefferson Avenue. 

From Iris Street and Hudson Street toward El Camino Real, two travel lanes in each direction will remain with shared lane markings added. Signs will show bicyclists can take these routes for slower streets.

A new traffic signal will also be implemented at the Valota Street intersection. 

The road dieting on Jefferson, including implementation of the Daylighting Law and accessible curb ramps, will be conducted in coordination with scheduled road paving projects to minimize construction disruption, according to a staff report. 

The improvements at Jefferson Avenue is part of Redwood City’s ongoing effort to reach Vision Zero, or zero deaths or serious injuries involving vehicles. 

“It’s a fact of American life that almost nobody in this country is more than one or two degrees away from a serious injury or a road death,” Chu said. “This is something that affects every single one of us.” 

Since 2020, the number of fatal and serious injury collisions in Redwood City have increased annually, according to the Vision Zero Program progress report presented in September 2025. 

In particular, collisions along Jefferson Avenue between El Camino Real and Farm Hill Boulevard show a need for improvements. Since 2017, there have been 101 vehicle collisions in the project zone; 15 involved pedestrians and four involved bicyclists. 

Serious traffic concerns on Jefferson have led the corridor to be identified as a “high-injury network” by Walk Bike Thrive and the countywide Local Roadway Safety Plan.

Already implemented improvements in the area include a new traffic signal at Cleveland Street and a HAWK signal at Clinton Street. 

The project is considered fully funded. Contracts intend to be awarded in March, and designs must be completed before January 2027 to receive the federal grants. Construction would begin after environmental quality act tests are conducted, intended by fall 2027, and is estimated to take between eight and 12 months to complete. 

“This is a fantastic project and it can’t come soon enough,” Councilmember Chris Sturken said.