A trucker plowed through a street tree in SoMa this week, destroying both the tree and the truck's cab in a collision that looked as dramatic as it was preventable. The immediate reaction is obvious: how do you lose a fight with a tree? But dig a little deeper and the story gets more interesting — and more frustrating.

As one local pointed out, "I hope this company is fined hella for such a dumb move." Fair enough. But here's the thing: California law caps truck height at 14 feet, and the city's own rules require street trees to be pruned to provide 14 feet of clearance on the road side. If the truck was on the road and within legal height limits, the question isn't just what was the driver thinking — it's why wasn't that tree trimmed?

And that question has an answer nobody at City Hall wants to talk about. Under the previous administration, the Bureau of Urban Forestry was effectively gutted. Prop E, passed by voters in 2016, was supposed to earmark roughly $19–20 million annually for street tree maintenance. Instead, funding was de-appropriated, arborists were reassigned, hiring was frozen, and maintenance contracts were canceled. The money voters approved? Redirected. The trees? Left to grow wild — apparently wild enough to swallow a truck cab.

Another SF resident quipped, "The tree darted out right in front of the driver!" Funny, sure. But the joke writes itself when a city can't manage basic tree trimming despite having a dedicated funding stream for exactly that purpose.

This is what happens when voter-approved funds get quietly shuffled around and basic infrastructure maintenance falls off the priority list. A trucker makes a bad day worse, a tree gets destroyed, a scooter rider nearly becomes collateral damage, and we're all left wondering: where did the money go?

San Francisco has a new mayor now. Here's a novel idea for the Lurie administration: spend the tree money on trees. The trucks — and the taxpayers — will thank you.