Decision request for 4/28 meeting (moved from 4/27): approve adding the data callout below to the live Community Health, Safety & Transportation page. Per feedback_no_platform_changes, this proposal does not touch the live page until you sign off.
Background
The live website Switch Lanes section makes a qualitative case. Phoenix PD calls-for-service + City road safety data now let us make a defensible quantitative case alongside it, without exposing the campaign to a 'cherry-picked the comparison' rebuttal.
Two earlier framings died in audit: (1) '~3× the crashes of comparable streets' — cherry-picked the three quietest D4 streets. (2) 'switch lanes uniquely cause head-on collisions' — Phoenix's KSI data shows 1 of 51 D4 head-ons on switch corridors (2%). The defensible claims below are what survives audit.
Proposed insert into 'Switch Lanes & Transportation' section
Position: after the existing opening paragraph ('The switch lanes on 7th Avenue and 7th Street reverse direction…'), before the bullet list ('Remove the switch lanes…').
What Phoenix's own road safety data shows about 7th Avenue and 7th Street in District 4:
- 2 of the 10 District 4 intersections that meet Phoenix's High Injury Network threshold sit on these two streets. Both corridors are flagged on the City's 2024 HIN.
- A crash every 11 hours on these two streets, every day, for the last five years.
- 15 traffic deaths since 2020. 14 of the 15 happened at intersections; one mid-block on 7th Street in 2024.
- E Devonshire Avenue & N 7th Street alone has produced two fatalities since 2021.
Switch lanes are the only road design in District 4 that legally puts oncoming traffic in your lane at rush hour. That's the design choice we are asking the city to walk back.
Source: Phoenix Police calls-for-service + City of Phoenix STR_RoadSafety_2024 (2018–2022 KSI + High Injury Network).
Proposed 'Why Michael' footer edit (same section)
Current:
Michael drives the switch lanes on 7th Avenue. His husband rode the light rail to work at the airport every day. His house was broken into; it took four hours for police to arrive.
Proposed:
Michael drives the switch lanes on 7th Avenue. He's seen what 15 D4 traffic deaths since 2020 look like as a daily commute, not a statistic. His husband rode the light rail to work at the airport every day. His house was broken into; it took four hours for police to arrive.
The 2 D4 HIN intersections on switch corridors (canonical)
- W Camelback Rd & N 7th Ave — 8 KSI crashes, on HIN 2024
- E Virginia Ave & N 7th St — 7 KSI crashes, on HIN 2024
Other 8 D4 HIN intersections (NOT on switch corridors):
- W Camelback Rd & N 27th Ave (KSI=10)
- N 27th Ave & W Indian School Rd (KSI=7)
- W Indian School Rd & N 19th Ave (KSI=7)
- N 15th Ave & W Indian School Rd (KSI=7)
- W Indian School Rd & N 43rd Ave (KSI=6)
- W Thomas Rd & N 43rd Ave (KSI=6)
- W McDowell Rd & N 43rd Ave (KSI=6)
- E Indian School Rd & N 3rd St (KSI=6)
What I need from you on 4/28
- Approve the data callout above (verbatim or with edits) — to insert into the live Community Health, Safety & Transportation page.
- Approve the 'Why Michael' footer edit (adds the 15-deaths line).
- Acknowledge the AZDOT crash dataset is on hold. Phoenix's KSI dataset is loaded and queryable in MySQL (
ksi_crashes,hin_segments,hin_intersections). AZDOT crash data (with crash-type detail) would only matter if a future debate / mailer needs head-on collision rates — which the data so far does not support.
What we deliberately are NOT proposing
- 'Switch lanes are the most dangerous streets in D4' — false. They carry 5% of D4 KSI; Indian School, Camelback, McDowell, Thomas all have more.
- 'Switch lanes uniquely cause head-on collisions' — false. Switch corridor head-ons: 1 of D4's 51 head-on KSI.
- Per-mile / per-vehicle comparisons — switch corridors are middle of pack. Hermes camp would shred any volume comparison.
Public copy must trace to either Phoenix PD CFS or City STR_RoadSafety_2024 dataset. Anything else needs an explicit sourcing note before it ships.