A 32-year-old woman, Yebin Kim, died in a traffic accident on San Francisco's Market Street on Friday, August 7, when her electric scooter became entangled in streetcar tracks and she was subsequently struck by a delivery truck. Kim, originally from Sacheon, South Korea, had moved to California a year and a half prior to pursue her career.
According to internal police reports cited by the San Francisco Chronicle, Kim sustained a severe head injury despite wearing a helmet. The incident occurred as she was traveling eastbound on Market Street, a major thoroughfare with embedded streetcar tracks.
Kim's mother, Yonga Cho, described her daughter as someone who pursued her dreams after overcoming poverty in South Korea. Kim attended Seoul National University and later moved to California to work for QCells, a renewable energy company, with positions in both Irvine and San Francisco. Her mother stated that Kim was scheduled to visit her family in South Korea less than a month after the accident.
Calls for Safer Market Street
At a vigil organized by the San Francisco Bicycle Coalition (SFBC), advocates called for enhanced safety measures on Market Street. These demands include the installation of physical barriers to separate scooter and bike riders from larger vehicles such as trucks and buses. The SFBC noted that Kim's death marked the 17th traffic fatality in the city in 2026 and the first involving a scooter rider.
The effort to improve safety on Market Street has been ongoing for years. In 2020, private vehicles were banned from the street, which WalkSF, a pedestrian safety advocacy group, reported led to a significant increase in transit service and a reduction in injury collisions. However, in August 2025, San Francisco Mayor Daniel Lurie permitted ride-sharing services and autonomous vehicles, such as Uber, Lyft, and Waymo, to operate on Market Street, a decision that drew criticism from proponents of a car-free street.
District 6 Supervisor Matt Dorsey was the only elected official present at the vigil for Kim. He commented, "Some time we’ll get Market Street right, then we’ll ask why it took so long."
Legal Considerations
Attorneys for Kim's family are exploring the possibility of a wrongful death lawsuit. According to the San Francisco Chronicle, their legal team is seeking more information from authorities. They indicated that a lawsuit could be pursued if evidence suggests fault on the part of the city of San Francisco or the truck driver. It remains unclear whether a criminal investigation is underway concerning the truck driver.
The Daily Mail has reached out to Mayor Lurie and the San Francisco Police Department for comment.