SF dad on a mission to raise awareness of pedestrian deaths, walks 50 miles in single day

SAN FRANCISCO (KGO) — One man is walking more than 100,000 steps in one day and 50 total miles for one cause: To raise awareness about pedestrian safety in San Francisco.

“The reason I’m out here doing this today is we have just been hit with a wave of pedestrian fatalities in the last few weeks,” said Harrison Anderson.

“As a parent to a four-year-old, I was really rocked, a couple of weeks ago, when a two-year-old girl was killed in the crosswalk, when she was hit by a car with her mom, down in Mission Bay.”

The avid walker described the tragedy as way too probable for any pedestrian.

“I walk so much with my own son, and, gosh, I can’t tell you how many times a car has come around a corner quickly or blown through a red light, and I just couldn’t shake that feeling like, gosh, that could have been us so easily,” said Anderson.

ABC7 Eyewitness News met with Anderson on Saturday at mile 29 of his cross-city journey.

“I got started this morning, right about 7 o’clock from Ina Coolbrith Park, just as the sun was kind of coming up, amazingly beautiful view up there. And then I’ve been kind of making my way through the city. When I do my long city walks, I’m very intentional about visiting all parts of San Francisco,” said Anderson, noting this trek is pushing his past his record for miles in a single day.

MORE: Mother, daughter struck at crosswalk in hit and run in SF, police say

“The longest walk I’ve done before today was 40 miles. I did that one day back in January, and past mile 25 or so, I think my entire body hurt, like, below my jaw, so I was expecting to be pushing through a lot more at this point. Maybe it’s just the adrenaline of, like, the cause that I’m out here for today.”

Saturday’s walk raised funds for Walk SF; a local nonprofit advocating to improve the city’s walking infrastructure and policies.