UNSAFE STREETS
I
mproving pedestrian and bicycle safety in
Florida is high on the minds of the state’s
many stakeholders. Being home to the most
pedestrian fatalities in the nation is a title no
one wants to claim.
BEFORE
According to the 2013 report “Florida Pedestrian
and Bicycle Strategic Safety Plan,” prepared by
the Center for Urban Transportation Research
at the University of South Florida, the state’s
pedestrian fatality rate was nearly double the
national average in 2011. Bicycle fatality rates
were almost triple the national average.
AFTER
Florida transportation officials have taken bold
action to make the streets safer for pedestrians
and bicyclists. Here are a few of the measures
taken to date:
• Florida’s transportation secretary created
the state’s Bicycle/Pedestrian Focused
Initiative
BEFORE
At times, work called for designing
multiple projects simultaneously.
Managing so many projects at once
– sometimes six at a time – was
challenging but never too much for
the team, he said.
“As long as you’re on top of the
schedule and you’re anticipating
potential impacts to that schedule,
your project should remain on track,
making everyone happy,” said Myers,
who prefers a proactive project
management approach rather than
being reactive. “You pretty much
have to be that way with this type of
contract.”
Craig Teal, a senior project manager
for District 2, appreciated Ayres’
handling of the challenges involved
in managing the schedules, design
16│TRENDS
AFTER
reviews, and other related tasks
throughout the contract.
“Sufficient resources were provided
by the Ayres team to address
multiple projects at once,” Teal said.
“Innovative solutions were provided
for many construction-related issues.”
Despite some unforeseen issues,
such as drainage challenges during
construction with some of the later
projects, Teal said Ayres was there.
“All through the contract, the big thing
was the res ponsive solutions from
the Ayres team,” Teal said. “When
you look at the volume and variety of
projects produced with this contract,
we are very satisfied with the results.”
From Myers’ perspective, knowing
Ayres’ designs are ultimately helping
to make the public safer makes all the
temporary hurdles worthwhile.
“On County Road 18, it gives
pedestrians a safe way to get into
town. It’s the same thing on County
Road 218, the trail. It’s a two-lane,
rural road. There are no sidewalks.
This connected an existing sidewalk
to a park,” Myers said. “It definitely
improved safety out there with getting
pedestrians, bicyclists, and everybody
off the shoulder and off the road.
These were really exciting projects to
work on.”
The above photos show before-and-after
conditions along County Road 218 near
Middleburg in Clay County. The new
shared-use path connects to an existing
sidewalk and provides a connection to a
library and a local ball park.
• The Florida Department of Transportation
(FDOT) added two full-time pedestrian
and bicycle safety specialists to each of
its seven district offices and another two
serving the full state from the central
offices
• FDOT issued a Pedestrian and Bicycle
Strategic Safety Plan in February 2013,
providing comprehensive objectives and
strategies to improve pedestrian and
bicycle safety
• Twenty-six city and county agencies have
adopted “Complete Streets” policies
Sources: “Dangerous by Design,” 2011,
Transportation for America; “Dangerous by
Design,” 2014, Smart Growth America,
National Complete Streets Coalition
TRENDS
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