BikeWalkLee: How design makes roads dangerous

BikeWalkLee Column ‘Go Coastal’
The News-Press, July 28, 2022
by Ken Gooderham

Image: FDOT improving pedestrian safety on roadways (WJHG)

The most recent “Dangerous by Design” analysis of pedestrian risk was just released. A front-page News-Press article told you about the “dangerous,” so let’s take a minute to look at the “design.”

Michael Braun’s front-page article did a fine job of summarizing (and contextualizing) the most recent analysis by Smart Growth America. A brief recap for those who may have missed it:

• Our area (Cape Coral/Fort Myers) dropped from the No. 1 spot a few years back to 23rd – not because we got safer, but because others areas got worse.
• Similarly, Florida lost the No. 1 spot as most deadly state (losing to New Mexico) – not because we got safer, but because NM got worse.
• One way to put this into perspective is that No. 9 most dangerous city in 2022 would have lead the list in 2017… but there were eight locations even worse.
• The pandemic, which caused traffic to plummet, didn’t make things safer for pedestrians – because people just started driving faster.
• Socioeconomic factors still hold sway in pedestrian risk, with skin color and annual income too often equaling more risk (age matters, too).

So, what’s the “design” part of the danger?

The study authors put it this way: “Our nation’s streets are dangerous by design, designed primarily to move cars quickly at the expense of keeping everyone safe.”

The design factor is twofold: The roadway design that encourages drivers to exceed the speed limit, and the roadway design that fails to offer other road users (especially pedestrians) a safe place to travel.

An example of the first is a wide, straight road with lots of lanes but not many signaled intersections. That’s a road meant for fast driving – which is what most drivers will do whatever the posted speed limit may be. A traffic study may indicate vehicle speed should not exceed 30 mph due to a variety of issues, but the road design itself is for twice that rate. How fast do you think most drivers are going to go?

The second design issue is one we see a lot around here: Roads made to move traffic, not anyone or anything else. Sidewalks may or may not exist – and if they do, they are usually interrupted by a lot of curb cuts or driveways. Those sidewalks are not separated from the traffic lanes, meaning fast-moving vehicles pass too close by pedestrians.

Crosswalks are too spread out if they exist at all, so people who need to cross the road for whatever reason do so amid speeding vehicles over multiple traffic lanes. There’s usually a lot of visual clutter or obstructions that make it harder for pedestrians (and others) to see or be seen.

And when other vehicles moving at slower speeds or making more frequent stops (think buses, for example) become part of the traffic, there’s no place for them to do their thing but in a traffic lane – where vehicles used to moving fast are subsequently frustrated or frenzied by the change.

As the study points out, even the way corners at intersections are rounded has an impact, making it easier for vehicles to turn without slowing much and making it a longer trip for pedestrians hoping to cross the street there.

That’s how things got worse during the pandemic: As traffic subsided, so did traffic congestion – meaning those who were still out on the road were able to drive faster. They did, and pedestrians (whose ranks may have grown as people sought ways to keep moving during the shutdown) paid the price.

That’s why the U.S. was one of just three countries (out of 63 analyzed) that saw pedestrians deaths rise during the pandemic.

Overall pedestrian fatalities are up 62% nationwide since 2009, which means we’re killing 18 people per day nationally. What can be done?

Obviously, change the design comes first. If you intentionally design streets to be driven faster than speed limits, people will drive faster. If you put crosswalks too far apart, or away from other traffic infrastructure that generates road crossing (such as, say, a bus stop pedestrians will cross the road to get to), people will take the risk of crossing where they have to (rather than where you want them to).

Second, incorporate “complete street” designs (made to accommodate all road users) in all new roadways (when it’s cheaper to do than after the fact) and in redesigns (especially high-traffic roads). Since a “complete street” in the middle of a highly developed urban area looks very different from one for a rural roadway, a more sensible road design would be easier to accomplish than some think.

Third, better data will yield better results. The fact that a report issued is 2022 can only address data collected in 2020 creates too much lag time between reality, review and response.

Fourth, while roadway design often is a top-down process, with local DOTs taking their cues from federal and state guidelines, it needs to incorporate more bottom-up thinking – because local officials (and local road users) often have the best handle on the most dangerous streets or the most unrealistic speed limits. Their insights need to have a place at the table, too.

Finally, safety needs to be the driving force in traffic design – not traffic speed or congestion reduction. Obviously, safety needs to factor in the other road users besides motor vehicle drivers, and it is possible to make this a win-win for all those users so that drivers and walkers all feel safer driving our streets.

Making a road safer to walk or bike means more people will try walking or biking on it – which is definitely a win for the community (giving people a reason to engage instead of isolate inside their vehicle), for the businesses they stroll by (rather than pass at 45 mph) and for walkers themselves – something we all become once we park our vehicles.

    • Find out more online at https://smartgrowthamerica.org/dangerous-by-design/

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EVENTS

FORT MYERS TRACK CLUB (ftmyerstrackclub.com):

• Tunnel to Towers 5K, Saturday, Sept. 10, FSW campus, Fort Myers.
• Downtown Dash 1 Mile Run, Friday, Sept. 16, downtown Fort Myers.
• Fort Myers Cops & Joggers 5K, Saturday, Oct. 8, downtown Fort Myers.
• Cape Coral Fire Department Fueled by Fire 5K, Saturday, Oct. 15, Tarpon Point, Cape Coral.
• 10K F.I.S.H. race, Saturday, Oct. 22, Sanibel Island.
  

GC RUNNERS (gcrunner.org):

• Friends of Foster Children Forever Labor Day 5K, Monday, Sept. 6, Lowdermilk Park, Naples.
• Gulf to Gulf 80 Mile Relay, Saturday, Oct. 22, Naples to Sanibel and back.
• Olde Naples 10K, Sunday, Nov. 13, Rodgers Park, Naples
  

ELITE EVENTS (runeliteevents.com):

• Naples Distance Classic Half-Marathon, 10K and 5K, Saturday, Oct. 8, Eagle Lakes Park, Naples.
• Naples Rocktoberfest 5K and 10K, Saturday, Oct. 22, North Collier Regional Park, Naples.
  

CYCLING 

The Caloosa Riders are offering member rides, but some are open to non-members (and it wouldn’t hurt you to join the club); check their ride calendar (caloosariders.org) for a description of the distance and speed, and to see if the ride is open to all.

SW Florida Critical Mass is offering their usual slate of family-friendly rides. Check out their line-up online (www.meetup.com/Biking-SWFL/events/) for details and times (and to make sure the ride is still rolling).

• SW Florida Critical Mass ride, first Friday of the month. A family-friendly slow night ride through Fort Myers. Front and rear bike lights required. Helmet and lights required, meet in the parking lot at 2180 West First Street, Fort Myers. 
• Sanibel Critical Mass night ride, second Saturday of the month. Gathers at Jerry’s Shopping Center, 1700 Periwinkle Way, on Sanibel. Lights required, helmets recommended.
• NE Lee Critical Mass ride, third Friday of the month. Gather in the Winn Dixie parking lot on Palm Beach Blvd. about five miles east of the Interstate; gather at 7 p.m. and roll at 7:30 p.m. for a slow ride through Fort Myers Shores.
• Cape Coral Critical Mass ride, fourth Friday of the month. Gather at the Southwest Florida Military Museum parking lot at 4820 Leonard Street for a family-friendly night ride through the Cape; helmets and lights required.
• Saturday Morning Slow Roll, fourth Saturday of the month. Meet-up at 2160 McGregor Blvd., Fort Myers. Recommended for inexperienced/young riders. Distance is 6 miles, includes group ride instruction.
  

TRIATHLONS

• Siesta Sprint Triathlon, Saturday, July 30, triathlon, duathlon and swim/run, Siesta Key, Sarasota (trifind.com)
  
• Top Gun Sprint Triathlon, Saturday, Aug. 6, Pinellas Bayway, St. Petersburg (www.thunderboltmultisport.com/Events/Top-Gun-Triathlon or runsignup.com)
• Fort Desoto Sprint or Olympic Tri, Sunday, Aug. 21, St. Petersburg (fortdesototrilogy.com/ or runsignup.com)
• Fort Desoto Sprint or Olympic Tri, Sunday, Sept. 18, St. Petersburg (fortdesototrilogy.com/ or runsignup.com)
• City Island Tri, Sunday, Oct. 9, Sarasota (https://run941.com/ or runsignup.com)
  

 

TELL US ABOUT YOUR RIDE

Have a favorite route you like to bike, or a unique walk you’d like to share with others? Tell us about it at info@bikewalklee.org, and maybe we can feature it in an upcoming column.

# # #

Ken Gooderham writes this on behalf of BikeWalkLee, a community coalition raising public awareness and advocating for complete streets in Lee County — streets that are designed, built, operated and maintained for safe and convenient travel for all users: pedestrians, bicyclists, motorists, and transit riders of all ages and abilities. Information, statistics and background online at bikewalklee.blogspot.com.

BikeWalkLee: Street safety a matter of design

BikeWalkLee Column ‘Go Coastal’
The News-Press, March 25, 2021
by Ken Gooderham

Image courtesy: 1stbikes.org

The most recent “Dangerous by Design” study of pedestrian deaths arrived recently, with Florida still leading as the most dangerous state for pedestrians. In an unexpected bit of “good” news, the Fort Myers-Cape Coral area’s ranking went down slightly since 2019, pushing us out of the Top 10 most dangerous areas (although the state overall was still well represented there).

Any positive feelings this news might have engendered were quickly dashed in the wake of a hit-and-run on a quiet Alva road that left one cyclist dead and another injured… as this still-anonymous driver took it upon him or herself to drag us back to being the best of the worst. Our condolences to the family and friends on a senseless loss.

The report found a number of issues including:

• Nationwide, it’s getting more dangerous each year for pedestrians and non-motorized traffic, with deaths up 45% from 2010 to 2019.
• As with many other areas of life, danger is driven by racial and economic factors – with more people of color plus older and poorer populations at greater risk.
• The current methods to combat this danger – enforcement and education – don’t seem to be moving the needle.
• Design matters – not just of roadways and bike-ped facilities, but of motor vehicles themselves. The report cites the rise in trucks and SUVs overall – and the increase in the size of both types of vehicles – as factors making our streets more deadly.
• Design can even ameliorate other driver mistakes – such as driving too fast or distracted driving – by increasing the chance of survival while making drivers’ dangerous behavior more difficult.
• Unfortunately, much roadway design still prioritizes speed over safety, while pitting motorized vs. non-motorized traffic against one another for visibility and safety.
• While the data is incomplete, it appears that the drop in driving due to the pandemic has not resulted in a concurrent drop in pedestrian deaths… as a lack of congestion brought on an increase in speeding.
• Geography also matters: Nine of the Top 10 worst places for safety are Sunbelt states (Delaware being the outlier). It’s not because the weather encourages more walking and biking but, say the report’s authors, because the development patterns that encourage driving and create more distances to get from one place to another.
• As mentioned above, our area saw the biggest drop in the danger index… a sign that some of the local efforts to make our streets safer are working, as well as an indication of how high our danger level was to begin with (since this big drop still left us just outside the Top 10 most dangerous). 

A word to the wary: This index is focused mainly on policymakers, a way to point out their failings and successes by measuring the human toll that bad design and incomplete streets wreak on a community. The ability to pit one area against another as well as show the causal relationship between better design and better safety can get official attention more effectively than a dry recitation of safety statistics.

The secondary audience is the bike/ped participant… not to scare you off the streets altogether, but to help you understand why the design of those streets can really matter to you.

Case in point: A new bike/ped facility such as a bike path or lane is rightly lauded for enhancing safety (as compared to what existed before). But if users still have to navigate a narrow and shoulder-less road to get to that path or lane, overall safety has not been reduced for those walkers or riders. 

Better facilities matter, but so does a better network of facilities that allows walkers and riders the ability to go further safer.

It’s also important not to allow this discussion to devolve into a driver vs. walker or rider argument. Better designed roadways are better for all users, giving everyone on that road a safe path to move from Point A to Point B even in the busiest times. Better designed roadways also make it easier for everyone to be safe, by including elements that enhance visibility, control speed, smooth transitions and allow for a variety of skills.

None of us are confined to just one role in roadway use, likely moving from driver to walker to rider through the course of a day. So wouldn’t it be better for all to know our roadways are designed to be safer, no matter the role we’re playing?

 

EVENTS: Here’s the latest in organized running and biking events locally… but confirm with the organizers and be flexible in case conditions change and large-group activities are limited. Of course, wear a mask and act appropriate to your age, physical condition and medical concerns.

FORT MYERS TRACK CLUB (ftmyerstrackclub.com):

• Run for the Youth 5K, March 27, LCSO Central District
  
• Downtown Dash, 1-mile run/walk, in person in downtown Fort Myers Friday, April 16
• Head & Neck Cancer A Hard Thing to Swallow 5K Run & 2-Mile Walk (in-person and virtual), Saturday, April 24

GC RUNNERS (gcrunner.org):

• Baker Park 5K, Saturday, March 27
• Run for the Music 10K, Saturday, April 10
• Tropicool 5K, May 8
  
• SNIP Collier 5K, May 31
  

ELITE EVENTS (runeliteevents.com):

• Naples Distance Classic, 5K/10K/half marathon, Saturday, April 10
  

OTHER RUNS

• Lakes Park Enrichment Foundation Virtual 5K fun run/walk, March 27 - April 3 (virtual, runsignup.com)
  
• Publix Run to the Arts 5K run/walk – in-person is now delayed to Nov. 20, runsignup.com or runtothearts.com
  

OTHER RIDES:

The Caloosa Riders are offering member rides, but some are open to non-members (and it wouldn’t hurt you to join the club); check their ride calendar (caloosariders.org) for a description of the distance and speed, and to see if the ride is open to all.

SW Florida Critical Mass is offering their usual slate of family-friendly rides. Check out their line-up online (www.meetup.com/Biking-SWFL/events/) for details and times (and to make sure the ride is still rolling).

• SW Florida Critical Mass ride, first Friday of the month. A family-friendly slow night ride through Fort Myers. Front and rear bike lights required. Helmet and lights required, meet in the parking lot at 2180 West First Street, Fort Myers. 
• Sanibel Critical Mass night ride, second Saturday of the month. Gathers at Jerry’s Shopping Center, 1700 Periwinkle Way, on Sanibel. Lights required, helmets recommended.
• NE Lee Critical Mass ride, third Friday of the month. Gather in the Winn Dixie parking lot on Palm Beach Blvd. about five miles east of the Interstate; gather at 7 p.m. and roll at 7:30 p.m. for a slow ride through Fort Myers Shores.
• Cape Coral Critical Mass ride, fourth Friday of the month. Gather at the Southwest Florida Military Museum parking lot at 4820 Leonard Street for a family-friendly night ride through the Cape; helmets and lights required.
• Saturday Morning Slow Roll, fourth Saturday of the month. Meet-up at 2160 McGregor Blvd., Fort Myers. Recommended for inexperienced/young riders. Distance is 6 miles, includes group ride instruction.

If racing is not your thing but you’d like to support their return nonetheless, consider volunteering to help out at the few in-person offerings ahead. With Covid concerns still confining some of the usual volunteers, a few new helping hand would certainly be welcomed.

TRIATHLONS:

• 2021 St. Anthony’s Triathlon, April 25, St. Petersburg. Olympic and sprint event
• 2021 Fitness Challenge Triathlon, May 2, Naples. Reverse sprint event
• 2021 Heartland Triathlon, June 12-13, Sebring. Kid’s event Saturday, adult Olympic and sprint triathlon, duathlon and aquabike Sunday.

 

TELL US ABOUT YOUR RIDE:

Have a favorite route you like to bike, or a unique walk you’d like to share with others? Tell us about it at info@bikewalklee.org, and maybe we can feature it in an upcoming column.

# # #

Ken Gooderham writes this on behalf of BikeWalkLee, a community coalition raising public awareness and advocating for complete streets in Lee County — streets that are designed, built, operated and maintained for safe and convenient travel for all users: pedestrians, bicyclists, motorists, and transit riders of all ages and abilities. Information, statistics and background online at www.BikeWalkLee.org.

 

 

Florida Weekly's Feature Story: Mean Streets

This week's feature story in Florida Weekly looks at what various communities in SWFL are doing to address the pedestrian safety crisis in our communities. 

Florida Weekly June 12, 2019

MEAN STREETS
Florida remains most dangerous state in our nation for pedestrians

FLORIDA REMAINS AT THE TOP OF THE list when it comes to crashes per capita between cyclists or people on foot and cars in which, many point out, the car always “wins.” The state’s most populous areas consistently bear the dubious distinctions of being among the most dangerous places to ride or walk in the United States, including the Cape Coral-Fort Myers, North Port-Sarasota-Bradenton, and Miami-Fort Lauderdale-West Palm Beach metro areas.

But there is also evidence that Florida has become friendlier to pedestrians. Over the last decade, there has been a shift toward Complete Streets policies at the state level and in counties and cities, in which roadways are designed or retrofit for all modes of transportation.

“We’re really trying to push everyone to get on board with Complete Streets to get a connected network,” said Valerie Neilson, deputy director of multimodal development for the Palm Beach Transportation Planning Agency.

For the Palm Beach TPA, that means prioritizing high density areas with vulnerable users close to major destinations or transit hubs such as schools, she said.

While the population and number of walkers, cyclists and cars on Florida roads has steadily increased, total bike/ ped crashes has declined in the last five years through 2018. While total fatalities increased statewide last year, some counties saw modest declines or stayed nearly the same.
Pedestrian advocates and official planners also are increasingly adopting programs to lessen the likelihood of crashes. Educating drivers and pedestrians on personal safety starting in grade school and on through adulthood, as well roadway engineering, have been shown to be among the most effective solutions.

Students and staff at Florida Gulf Coast University audit local intersections and recommend safety improvements for the nonprofit Streets Alive of Southwest Florida.

In Miami-Dade County, an educational program in elementary schools called WalkSafe led to a decrease in the number of children age 0 to 14 admitted to Nicklaus Children’s Hospital and Jackson Ryder Trauma Center between 2003 and 2017.

“We’re really happy that we’ve been able to decrease injury by about 75 percent in our county and (we plan to) continue on that path,” said Dr. Gillian Hotz, Ph.D., a behavioral neuroscientist who helped develop WalkSafe and a similar BikeSafe program for middle schools and parks.

Ms. Neilson in West Palm Beach believes WalkSafe should be a statewide program.
“I think as a state we should enforce (the program) in all schools,” she said.

Diana Giraldo, president and co-founder of the nonprofit Streets Alive of Southwest Florida, is working with Florida Gulf Coast University students, along with the city of Bonita Springs, and the Lee County Department of Transportation, to audit and identify needed improvements at places such as the new Bonita Springs High School.

On a Tuesday in late May she and students took counts of the students leaving on foot and by bike at the Shangrila Road crossing, where there is no light, crosswalk markings or signage such as a speed limit or school zone sign. Ms. Giraldo clocked one truck going 53 miles per hour in this 35 mile per hour zone.

Watching a group of kids pour out of the parking lot and cross the street, she grimaced. It brings back memories of her bicycle crash with a car in 2016. She’s not able to ride again, she said, because a brain injury causes her to lose her balance.

“When I see the lack of empathy from people driving, that’s one of the hardest things,” she said.
Educational programs are only part of the solution.

“While education is a noble effort, we are designed to be car oriented,” she said. “Old designs or many of the current developing areas still encourage cars for the most part… Education and advocacy will fall short unless it is eventually accompanied with infrastructure changes.”

There is a combination of factors that keep Florida high on lists such as Smart Growth America’s 2019 Pedestrian Danger Index. The Governors Highway Safety Association’s examination of crashes between 2008 and 2017, which showed that pedestrian fatalities across the country increased by 35 percent during that time, also named Florida as one of the worst offenders.

Some of the things that make the state among the most attractive for pedestrians, such as the weather, also makes it the worst, said Guillermo Canedo, a communications specialist for the Florida Department of Transportation in South Florida.

“There’s great weather year round,” Mr. Canedo said. “There’s flat terrain. Roads are straight, generally wide and long — which is good and bad. Bad in the sense that it kind of entices motorists to travel at higher speeds.

Diana Giraldo, founder of the nonprofit Streets of Alive of Southwest Florida, clocks a car going 64 in a 45 mile per hour zone by Bonita Springs High School on Imperial Parkway.

“We have national and international tourists who visit our state who may be unfamiliar with our roads and our rules of the road. We have different driving cultures. So even though you might put out traffic safety features on the road, not everyone is going to obey them.

“We have more bicyclists on the roads now than ever before. It’s become an increasingly popular sport and form of transportation and way to commute, like I do myself.
“We have a high number of elderly motorists. As you grow older your reaction times slow and your visibility lessens.

“We have densely populated cities, so more cars and more bikes in the same places, and more and more we have distracted drivers, motorists who are texting, not paying attention to their environment. And we’re seeing more electric scooters, so all of those things impact the pedestrian landscape here.”
For his part, Naples Cyclery owner and cyclist Peter Marsh finds youthful pedestrians can be as problematic as older drivers.

A car stops at a green light to let people cross the street on Fort Myers Breach.

“I’m way more freaked out from a 17-year-old chick on Snapchat than a 74-year-old grandmother going to get freakin’ bread,” he said.
The CDC says the risk of vehicle crashes is higher among teens than any other age group.

However, a Collier County Metropolitan Planning Organization analysis of crash data from 2013 to 2015, though a much smaller sample, found that neither teen drivers or those age 65 and over are involved in a disproportionate number of crashes. Teens make up about 5 percent of the Collier County population and were involved in about 5 percent of crashes while the older drivers make up about 30 percent of the population and were involved in 32 percent of crashes.

Smartphones are another major cause of crashes, the GHSA report says, pointing out that the number of phones in the U.S. quintupled between 2008 and 2017.

But Collier MPO’s report found that aggressive driving was a contributing factors in 37 percent of crashes and failure to yield in 31 percent, while both impaired or intoxicated driving and distracted driving were both factors in only about 10 percent of crashes.

Another report cited by the Collier MPO showed pedestrian’s top errors were failure to yield when crossing the road and dashing or darting out; while drivers’ top errors were failure to yield when crossing the road and backing up into someone.

It’s easy to quibble about blame between these varied and sometimes seemingly contradictory findings. Experts point to all of the above as problems. Personal behavior and roadway engineering that could reduce crashes is a complex issue that needs to be addressed by individual area, said Collier MPO Executive Director Anne McLaughlin, and that those areas are more or less the busiest areas, as one would expect.

“There’s no one off-the-shelf solution for bike pedestrian safety. You really have to analyze why a particular location is exhibiting a lot of crashes,” she said. “And there is a relationship between high usage, where a lot of people are walking and riding, and a high number of crashes are (happening). So there’s an element of simple exposure.”

In the area near where Mr. Marsh lives across from Golden Gate City he often sees people apparently headed to or from work after dusk without lights or helmets. The GHSA report found that between 2008 and 2017, 75 percent of fatal crashes in the U.S. occurred after dark. The situation along Palm Beach Boulevard in Fort Myers, a high-crash corridor, also includes a lower-income community where people often depend on walking or riding as transportation.

— Source: FIRES (Florida’s Integrated Report Exchange System)

Smart Growth’s report points out the problem as well.
“Older adults, people of color, and people walking in low-income communities bear a higher share of harm,” it reads, often because of poor road design.

Along Palm Beach Boulevard, crosswalks or sometimes spaced so far apart that people would have to walk a mile out of their way to use one. No one would want to do that, so they cross elsewhere.
“You’ve got to remember people miscalculate speed and distance,” said Jay Anderson, a traffic safety advocate and former EMS captain who founded the nonprofit Stay Alive… Just Drive in Lee County. “It’s very hard to judge. A vehicle going 45 mph is going 66 feet per second.”

— Source: Seattle.gov. Vision Zero/ Collier MPO

Even the most experienced riders can have a lapse in common sense.
“Implementing some really common sense tactics I think go a really long way for most folks,” Mr. Marsh said. “One gentleman comes to mind is good friend of ours. He was training for an Ironman race and he was in that mindset where he had to get miles in. It was almost like at any cost these training rides had to be complete. He was on Immokalee or Oil Well when it was foggy out or something. (He) got smoked by something.” Fortunately that rider recovered.

Punta Gorda resident and longtime cyclist Court Nederveld still puts in about 8,000 miles per year on his bicycle, he said. He’s a member of Charlotte County MPO’s Bicycle and Pedestrian Advisory Committee and past president of the Peace River Riders Bicycle Club. He’s seen major improvements over the last 15 years and argues that bicycling is essentially a safe activity for those who know and follow the rules.

Mr. Anderson of Stay Alive… Just Drive agrees. That goes for both drivers and cyclists, he adds:
“If people would obey the traffic laws think what a different it would make. That’s the solution to the problem as simple and corny as it sounds.”

Mr. Marsh addressed some of the strides pedestrian and bicycle advocates have made and where improvement is needed.

“The number of people riding bikes has just exploded” in the last 15 years, he said. “And that alone is a driving force for the modifications we need to the transportation system. So I give that a big bonus right there…

“We’ve seen the state of Florida do an almost 180 degree turn to work towards Complete Streets. (But) there’s a tremendous pushback from some local municipalities and counties.”
And he has seen more improvements for recreational cyclists than those who use it as a means of transportation.

“That’s where we need to really focus is turning bicycle riding into a transportation mode in addition to recreation,” he said.

In October 2018 the Charlotte MPO adopted a Bicycle Pedestrian Master Plan for the first time. Executive Director Gary Harrell said that could help draw funding for improvements. But filling in those missing links to make all roads, which were originally designed just for cars, amenable to pedestrians and cyclists will be a steep challenge.

From post-World War II for decades onward, Florida’s road system was built for cars. And it may take years to see the results in fewer crashes from retrofitting roads with paint, signage, and more expensive improvements.

“The harder part it comes in several categories where we deal with the inventory of what we have and some roadways do have bicycle paths,” Mr. Harrell said. “Some of them have bicycle lanes, some of them just have wide shoulders, and many of them have no shoulders.” ¦

BICYCLE REGULATIONS
In Florida, a bicycle is legally defined as a vehicle. Bicyclists have the same rights to the roadway and must obey the same traffic laws as the operators of other vehicles.

When riding on sidewalks or in crosswalks, a bicyclist has the same rights and duties as a pedestrian.
A bicyclist riding on sidewalks or in crosswalks must yield the right of way to pedestrians and must give an audible signal before passing.

A bicycle operated between sunset and sunrise must be equipped with a lamp on the front exhibiting a white light visible from 500 feet to the front and a red reflector and a lamp on the rear exhibiting a red light visible from 600 feet to the rear.

A bicyclist who is not traveling at the same speed of other traffic must ride as close as practical to the right hand curb or edge of roadway. A bicyclist may leave the right-most portion of the road in one of the following situations: when passing, making a left turn, to avoid hazards, or when a lane is too narrow for a bicycle and a car to share it safely.

*Riding single file is required except on bike paths or parts of roadways set aside for the exclusive use of bicycles, or when two people riding side-by-side within one lane will not impede traffic flow.
— Source: Section 316.2065, Florida Statutes

PEDESTRIAN REGULATIONS
When a sidewalk is available, pedestrians are not allowed to walk on the roadway.

Where sidewalks are not provided, pedestrians shall walk on the shoulder on the left side of the roadway, facing traffic.

When traffic signals are not present or not operational, the driver of a vehicle must yield the right of way, slowing or stopping if necessary, to pedestrians crossing within a crosswalk.

Pedestrians crossing the roadway at any point other than within a marked or unmarked crosswalk must yield the right of way to the vehicles upon the roadway.

Pavement markings are not required for crosswalks at intersections. Imaginary lines connecting the sidewalks on opposite sides of an intersection define an unmarked crosswalk. Pedestrians in unmarked crosswalks have all the rights of pedestrians in marked crosswalks.

No pedestrian shall walk upon a limited access facility (freeway or interstate highway) or a ramp connecting a limited access facility to any other street or highway.
— Source: Sections 316.130 and 316.091, Florida Statutes

THREE-FOOT RULE
The driver of a vehicle overtaking a bicycle or other nonmotorized vehicle must pass the bicycle or other nonmotorized vehicle at a safe distance of not less than 3 feet between the vehicle and the bicycle or other nonmotorized vehicle.
— Source: Section 316.083, Florida Statutes

Action Alert: Attend April 16th School District Town Hall Meeting re: bus stop safety

The recent tragic deaths of two Lee County school students while waiting at school bus stops have caught the attention of citizens throughout Lee County.  The School Superintendent, the Sheriff's Office, the Cape Coral City Council and Cape Coral Police are actively working to address school bus stop safety problems, and parents, neighbors, and citizens are doing their part..  Superintendent Greg Adkins is leading the way, and citing the Dangerous by Design study that ranks Lee County as one of the most dangerous communities in the country for pedestrians, and how those dangers impact school students.  As Superintendent Adkins says in his letter: "The reality is, we need to work together as a community to make our roads and streets safer, not just for students, but for all pedestrians and bikers. We plan to be a leader in that charge."   BikeWalkLee welcomes his leadership and encourages the many other community leaders to join him.  No one agency or organization can bring about the changes needed to make our streets and bus stops safer for students and everyone. And the willingness of all of us to change our behavior while on the streets of our community is key to making our roadways safer for all users.

School Superintendent's Message on Bus Stop Safety

On April 5th Superintendent Adkins sent a message to all parents about Bus Stop Safety:  Superintendent's Message - Bus Stop Safety.pdf 

The School District is holding a Town Hall meeting on Tuesday, April 16th to talk about bus stop safety, and invites the public to participate.  Come to share your ideas about how to address these problems, or watch the live streaming of the meeting on your electronic devise or PC.

What:  School District Town Hall Meeting
When:  Tuesday, April 16th at 6:00 -7:30 p.m.
Where: District Office Board Room
             2855 Colonial Blvd., Fort Myers



The School District of Lee County SUPERINTENDENT MESSAGE

On Tuesday, April 16, we will hold a Town Hall Meeting focusing on bus stop safety from 6pm – 7:30pm. It will be held in the Board Room at the District Office (2855 Colonial Boulevard, Fort Myers), however, you can participate from your home, as we will stream it live on the District’s YouTube and Facebook accounts.  You can submit questions using the above email address, or in the comments section of the Facebook feed.

Keeping our students, staff, and schools safe is of highest priority and the responsibility of everyone in our community. We are thankful for our partnerships with law enforcement and local governments in this endeavor and thank you for your ongoing support to make our schools and your students as safe as possible.

Sincerely, 

Dr. Greg Adkins Superintendent

Superintendent's Message - Bus Stop Safety.pdf 

April 5, 2019

Dear School District of Lee County Families, 

Last week one of our families lost their 8-year old daughter in a tragic accident at a bus stop.  Earlier this year, another family suffered the same loss when their 12-year old daughter was hit and killed while walking her sister to the bus stop. 

While these accidents were the cause of drivers not paying attention, they rightly raise questions about the safety of school bus stops and walking areas.  Over the last week, hundreds of you have reached out, asking how to make stops safer and offering solutions.

I want to let you know that we hear you. In the last few days, we have met with representatives from each law enforcement agency in Lee County as well as a team from the City of Cape Coral.  We hope to engage other municipalities in the coming days. 

To give you some background, The School District of Lee County has 6,958 bus stops.  We have 753 routes on which we transport 49,231 riders.  Our buses make 35,599 stops a day. Since August, we have had to make 16,149 stop changes. The majority of those are parents wishing to move their children from one established stop to another. However, we have had to physically change stop locations due to parent requests, student mobility, student growth, construction, and safety concerns like sexual offenders/predators moving into an area.  It is a herculean task. 

I know many people say that if we simply got rid of school choice that would help, and to a certain extent, it would.  In the next few years, we will move to an elementary proximity plan where parents will be able to choose from the closest 4-6 schools from their home.  This will help with transportation and possibly school start times.  However, infrastructure issues would still exist.  

Each year Smart Growth America releases its Dangerous by Design study, which ranks state and metropolitan areas around the country using a “Pedestrian Danger Index” (PDI).  Based on PDI, Cape Coral/Fort Myers ranks as the 8th most dangerous metro area for walking in the United States. 

The reality is, we need to work together as a community to make our roads and streets safer, not just for students, but for all pedestrians and bikers. We plan to be a leader in that charge.  

This week we launched an updated page on our District website devoted to walkers and bus riders with videos, safety tips and information for parents to share with their students: www.leeschools.net/safety. In addition, we created email address where you can send ideas: busstopsafety@leeschools.net.

BikeWalkLee's message in the words of Cindy Banyai, mom of kids in Lee County schools and BikeWalkLee Steering Committee member:

"It is a dream of mine to let my children walk or bike to school without being worried sick that a motorist is going to mow them down - even with the sidewalks and lights that my neighborhood is fortunate enough to have. All our children deserve to be able to get to school without undue risk of death. Every parent deserves that peace of mind. It is all our responsibility to provide this. Drivers need to be alert and cautious, following speed restrictions. Schools need to make policies that make sense for families and their environment, not just a logistical bottom line. Local governments need to secure funding and plan for infrastructure that is safe for all users, including people on bikes and walking. Let's keep all our kids safe!"

Related Links:
News-Press articles (all were posted on BWL's Facebook Page):

April 5, 2019: 8-year-old's death spurs Cape Coral residents to put benches in yards for school bus riders.

April 2, 2019: Benches, sidewalks, safety top concerns for local leaders after death of Cape Coral girl.

March 28, 2019: Lights for Layla: local agencies raising money for LED lights on student backpacks after girl's death at school bus stop

March 28, 2019: Cape Coral, Lee County School District to analyze bus stop safety after student deaths.

March 26, 2019:  Cape Coral police seize truck, eye person of interest in hit-and-run that killed 8-year-old girl.

March 25, 2019: 8-year-old dies in Cape Coral hit-and-run accident Monday morning.

 

BWL Blog January 23, 2019: BikeWalkLee's Statement on the 2019 Dangerous by Design Report: Assessment of Efforts in Lee County to Improve Pedestrian Safety and Future Improvements Needed 

 

Are pedestrians in peril?

BikeWalkLee Column
The News-Press, January 31, 2019
by Ken Gooderham

So just how dangerous is it to walk in Southwest Florida? It really depends on where and when you walk, with perhaps a little “why” thrown in as well.

The recently released “Dangerous by Design” 2019 report noted a rise in overall pedestrian deaths nationally, with Florida as the most dangerous state for pedestrian fatalities (again) and Lee County remaining in the Top 10 most dangerous metropolitan areas (albeit moving from its No. 1 position in 2016 to No. 8 in this edition) in the country – and eight of the top 10 most dangerous areas are in Florida).

Looking over a broader arc of time, from 2008 to 2017 nationally:
    • Vehicle miles traveled increased by 8.1%,
    • Walking as a share of all trips increase by less than 1%,
    • Traffic deaths among motor vehicle occupants decreased by 6.1%
    • And pedestrian deaths increased by 35.1%.

So we’re not really walking more, and it’s safer to be in a vehicle than it was before – but pedestrian deaths have jumped more than four times the increase in vehicle miles traveled. What gives?

A lot of the problem is being chalked up to street design – specifically, streets designed only to move motor traffic and not foot or bicycle traffic – as well as more distracted drivers… yes, we’re talking about you there texting on your cell phone as you drive to work.

Think about it… streets designed to move only motor vehicles (and move them as quickly as possible) usually leave out safe places for people to walk and bike – places away from fast-moving motor vehicles such as off-road sidewalks and shared use paths and buffered bike lanes – as well as safe places to cross the traffic lanes – crosswalks and other pedestrian crossings that are safe and convenient to use (for the walkers, that is).

Without those safe places, pedestrians and cyclists are either forced to find another route or forced to share the road in a way that’s not really sharing – and not really safe. Then add in the motor vehicle operator who is paying more attention to his or her electronic devices than they are to the demanding work of driving – and a momentary lapse in attention becomes a life-threatening situation for a nearby walker or biker who unfortunately has nowhere else to go but right next to the traffic lanes.

Enticing distractions and bad road designs – a recipe for pedestrian disaster.

But to go back to the initial question: How dangerous is it to walk or ride here? If you have choices – of routes, let’s say, or times of day or any other option that would let you take a safer route – you can probably feel pretty safe. Walk on the sidewalk or shared use path, ride on a bike path or bike lane – and, of course, keep your wits about you while you doing this – and you’ll more often than not return home safe.

But if you don’t have the luxury of making those kind of choices, if you have to walk along a busy road to get to work or school or shopping, and you have to do it during rush hour, before dawn or after dusk – being a pedestrian can be dangerous.

A lot of our major roadways – where jobs and shops and schools tend to be – weren’t design for pedestrian or bicycle traffic. They were designed to move vehicles as quickly as possible from A to B… and even with upgrades to overcome design flaws, they can still be a pretty scary place to walk or bike.

Pedestrians and cyclists can (and should) do whatever they can to be safer, more visible and more aware when they are biking or walking, Bright colors, flashing lights or reflectors and smart walking or biking make a difference.

Of course, we all should encourage our public officials to design and build better roadways (and fix the ones that need to be updated), roads that take into account ALL the users… because well-designed roads make ALL of us safer, whether we’re driving, biking or walking.

Finally, we should all start paying more attention to what we’re doing – whether we’re walking or biking or driving (but especially driving). Put down the phone, turn down the music, take off the headsets – and focus on the most important task at hand, getting yourself safely from one place to another.

Some dangers are done by design, others out of bad habits. Either way, we can and should do something about them.

Ready to ride or run?

Run?  Plenty of 5Ks this weekend and next, where you can run for education, clean water, the arts, scouting and even Rotary.. and there’s even a special Edison Festival race for kids! Details at ftmyerstrackclub.com, gcrunner.org, 3dracinginc.com, runforthearts.com and trifind.com.

Ride? If the weather lets you hit the road, a few rides ahead: Critical Mass amasses for the downtown Fort Myers ride Friday night and the Sanibel ride Feb. 9 (meetup.com) Looking for more? Head to Arcadia Feb. 9 for Ride for Tiny Town and 60-, 30- or 15-mile rides. (caloosariders.org). Not enough? Then throw in the Wakey, Wakey! Sunday morning rides (helmets are required, no ear buds, and no aero bar use while in the group). 

Both? Upcoming events include:

• Sunday, Feb.11: Tri Your Heart Out sprint, Sarasota (trifind.com) 
• Saturday, May 11: Cape Coral Sprint Tri (trifind.com)
• Saturday, May 18: Life’s a Beach Tri, Sarasota (trifind.com)
• Sunday, June 2: 33rd Annual Fitness Challenge Triathlon, Naples (trifind.com)
• Sunday, June 9: Heartland Sprint and Olympic Tri, Sebring (trifind.com)
• Sunday, June 23: Sirens Sprint Tri, Sarasota (trifind.com)
• Willing to drive? Check trifind.com or active.com for tris around the state.

TELL US ABOUT YOUR RIDE:

Have a favorite route you like to bike, or a unique walk you’d like to share with others? Tell us about it at info@bikewalklee.org, and maybe we can feature it in an upcoming column.

# # #

Ken Gooderham writes this on behalf of BikeWalkLee, a community coalition raising public awareness and advocating for complete streets in Lee County — streets that are designed, built, operated and maintained for safe and convenient travel for all users: pedestrians, bicyclists, motorists, and transit riders of all ages and abilities. Information, statistics and background online at www.BikeWalkLee.org. 


 

Lee County shows very slight improvement in safety ranking

Florida Weekly 'Outdoors' column, 1/30/2019
danMOSER
bikepedmoser@gmail.com

Unenforced sidewalk parking violations is one reason we have such a poor pedestrian record. DAN MOSER / FLORIDA WEEKLY

The 2019 Dangerous by Design report has been released and once again Florida is the most dangerous state in America for pedestrians. Eight of the top 10 worst metro areas are in our state. While the Cape Coral-Fort Myers metro area — all of Lee County — moved from first to eighth most dangerous, it’s primarily because other communities had a reduction in pedestrians walking to work, and that factors into the index used for the rankings.

So there’s really nothing to celebrate when it comes to Lee County’s improvement. Admittedly, there have been a number of bike/ped infrastructure additions since the last report, but many of our elected representatives and transportation officials’ mindsets remains focused on moving as many motor vehicles as efficiently as possible with the plight of non-motorists being of secondary concern.

In 2018, pedestrians accounted for 23 of the total of 93 overall traffic fatalities in Lee County, meaning approximately one of every four of those killed was a pedestrian — well above the national average — as has been the case for many years. Cyclists fared better, accounting for four of the total fatalities. However, the 473 non-fatal reported crashes among vulnerable road users frequently result in serious and life-changing injuries, keeping in mind that law enforcement agencies frequently fail to report crashes involving non-motorists. So, besides our elected representatives and transportation officials implementing Complete Streets with improvements such as reducing speed limits through redesign and road diets, what else must be done?

One way that communities become bike/ped-friendly is when a critical mass of people on foot, bike and other non-motorized means are part of traffic and become impossible to ignore. When that occurs drivers and non-motorists alike change behavior accordingly. Sanibel Island is probably the only local community that even comes close to reaching a critical mass that has actually created an environment much different than the rest of our county, hence they’ve earned silver-level Bike Friendly Community status.

A few other pockets of critical mass are in some of our cities’ downtown areas and beach communities. However, none of these places can truly be considered bike/ ped-friendly, at least based on the way drivers routinely fail to stop for folks in crosswalks, the fact that many pedestrians aren’t assertive in exercising their right to compel drivers to allow them to cross streets at crosswalks and the tendency of cyclists to ride against traffic and operate on sidewalks rather than roads, even where bike lanes exist.

Enforcement of traffic laws that put non-motorists at risk is another area that should be beefed up. In particular, speeding and failing to stop before making a right turn would be good violations on which to focus. Stopping cyclists who ride against traffic is another common violation that’s never addressed unless a crash has occurred. Also, law enforcement personnel should have a better understanding of laws that pertain to non-motorists because all too often motorists are wrongly let off the hook when they are involved in a crash with pedestrians and cyclists or the non-motorist is incorrectly deemed at fault. When this occurs, motorists continue to drive with the mindset that they rule the road and non-motorists realize they don’t really have the rights our laws provide them.

Of course, individual and societal responsibility are paramount. How often do we see signs posted in residential areas that remind motorists to “Drive Like Your Kids Live Here”? Why is this even necessary? There will always be a small percentage of bad actors but it should be socially unacceptable to operate a weapon (i.e., motor vehicle) that can kill in an instant in any way other than to treat it as such. Far too many of us operate as if we were sitting in our living room, paying little attention to the complex act of driving.

Obviously, it will take everyone to change our traffic environment reality. Let’s hope the latest report that re-confirms our severe problem will be taken seriously by everyone. For much more on this matter, look to bikewalklee.blogspot.com.¦

 
- Dan Moser is a long-time bicycle/pedestrian advocate and traffic safety professional who cycles, runs and walks regularly for transportation, recreation and fitness. Contact him at bikepedmoser@gmail.com and 334-6417. 

For Lee County cycling and tri events visit Caloosa Riders Bicycle Club (caloosariders.org); Florida Mudcutters (mudcutters.org); and SW Florida Biking Meetup Group (meetup.com/Biking-SWFL). The Florida Bicycle Association (floridabicycle.org) is your source for statewide happenings. BikeWalkLee’s blog site has all the information you’ll need to stay abreast of advocacy efforts in Southwest Florida as well as statewide and nationally.

News-Press: Nationwide dangerous roads study again places Florida first; Cape Coral, Fort Myers drops

Fort Myers New-Press, Jan. 23, 2019

Nationwide dangerous roads study again places Florida first; Cape Coral, Fort Myers drops, by Michael Braun

Despite the reality of two pedestrian deaths in Lee County in the past eight days, a new study shows the Cape Coral-Fort Myers metropolitan area is no longer the deadliest spot for people traveling on foot or bike in Florida.

However, Florida once again is the deadliest state for pedestrians, according to the national 2019 Dangerous By Design study.

The Florida Highway Patrol said Alana Marie Tamplin, 12, was walking south on the edge of Durrance Road near Deal Road when she was hit by this vehicle Monday. (Photo: Special to The News-Press/FHP)

The Cape Coral-Fort Myers area's decline in standing does not necessarily mean the area is safer, said Emiko Atherton, executive director of the National Complete Streets Coalition.

"We don't look at actual causation," she said of the study, adding that it wasn't likely a case of Lee County getting better. "Our best guess is that some other places in Florida got worse."

The two most recent pedestrian deaths in Lee County could give pause to that assessment.

On the morning of Jan. 14, 12-year-old Alana Tamplin was hit and killed as she walked along Durrance Street near her North Fort Myers home. A few days later Pauline Griffiths, 70, of Ontario, Canada, was trying to cross the northbound lanes of 41 in North Fort Myers and was hit and killed by a motorcycle. The motorcyclist also died in the crash.The mother of Alana, Sarah Tamplin, said another crash happened on Durrance in the past few days.

 "Someone hit a rider and his horse on our street. So my comment is that clearly dark or daylight doesn't make a difference," she said. "If you are behind the wheel, you need to pay attention. Get rid of the distractions because your single moment of inattention can cost someone their lives and no one deserves to lose a loved one in such a senseless tragedy."

The study, released Jan. 22 by the National Complete Streets Coalition, ranked 100 major metropolitan areas across the U.S. that are the worst for pedestrian safety based on population, pedestrian commuters and fatalities and based on statistics gathered from 2007 to 2018.

The coalition is made up of Smart Growth America, AARP and other organizations.

The study showed drivers hit and killed 49,340 pedestrians nationwide from 2007-18.

Joining Florida at the top of the list again was Alabama. The rest of the top 10 states — Delaware, Louisiana, Mississippi, Georgia, New Mexico, Texas, Arizona and South Carolina — stayed the same but many switched positions.

In Florida in the 2007-18 period there have been 5,433 pedestrian deaths. California had more deaths in that time frame but, with a larger population, that state had a lower pedestrian fatalities per 100,000 population percentage.

"I'm not surprised that Lee County retains a position among the worse 10 nationwide," said Dan Moser, BikeWalkLee steering committee member and traffic safety consultant. "From my perspective, since the release of the 2016 report, there's been little to no action to address the problems or even a sense of urgency among our elected and transportation officials or tourism, building, and real estate sector reps. Only advocates, first responders and those in the health care system have been waving red flags. Otherwise it's been road-building and development business-as-usual. I'd hope that this latest report will finally light a fire under those who can change things for the better."

Florida metropolitan areas ranked high in the nation's top 10. In order, the most dangerous areas were: Orlando-Kissimmee-Sanford, Deltona-Daytona Beach-Ormond Beach, Palm Bay-Melbourne-Titusville, North Port-Bradenton-Sarasota, Lakeland-Winter Haven, Jacksonville, Bakersfield, California; Cape Coral-Fort Myers, Tampa-St. Petersburg-Clearwater, and Jackson, Mississippi.

A previous study ranked the Cape Coral-Fort Myers metropolitan area as the deadliest in the nation for pedestrians. That report covered the 2005-14 period.

Don Scott, chair of the Metropolitan Planning Organization, said that Lee County recorded a positive in the past year with total traffic fatalities down, 93 compared to 113 in 2017.

"The negative is that pedestrian fatalities haven' changed," he said. There were 23 pedestrians deaths and four bicycle deaths in Lee County in 2018 compared to 18 and three in 2017.

Statewide, while overall traffic deaths dropped from 3,114 in 2017 to 3,004 in 2018, with pedestrian and bike deaths were up in that time. Pedestrian deaths rose from 658 to 668 and bicycle deaths went from 128 to 140.

"FHP encourages all motorists to drive sober, undistracted and with all occupants properly restrained," said Lt. Greg Bueno of the Florida Highway Patrol. "Motorists who follow all traffic laws, obey speed limits and operate in a courteous manner toward fellow drivers are always safer on the state’s highways. "

The report gave an expanded look at pedestrian safety patterns and examined how pedestrian fatalities disproportionately affected diverse communities and older people.

The report also presented data on pedestrian fatalities and injuries in every U.S. metro area included in the study, as well as state and county assessments and an online, interactive map showing the locations where pedestrian fatalities have occurred.

Among the solutions suggestion were better planning by state departments of transportation, more flexible federal guidelines for planners and engineers and higher federal funding priorities.

 Deadliest areas for pedestrians
 The report ranks the below metro areas for the top 20 highest (worst) “Pedestrian Danger Index” ratings:

1) Orlando-Kissimmee-Sanford, FL

2) Deltona-Daytona Beach-Ormond Beach, FL

3) Palm Bay-Melbourne-Titusville, FL

4) North Port-Sarasota-Bradenton, FL

5) Lakeland-Winter Haven, FL

6) Jacksonville, FL

7) Bakersfield, CA

8) Cape Coral-Fort Myers, FL

9) Tampa-St. Petersburg-Clearwater, FL

10) Jackson, MS

11) Memphis, TN-AR

12) Baton Rouge, LA

13) Birmingham-Hoover, AL

14) Miami-Fort Lauderdale-West Palm Beach, FL

15) Greenville-Anderson-Mauldin, SC

16) McAllen-Edinburg-Mission, TX

17) Albuquerque, NM

18) Detroit-Warren-Dearborn, MI

19) Little Rock-North Little Rock-Conway, AR

20) Augusta-Richmond County, GA-SC


:More

Motorcyclist, pedestrian killed in crash on US 41 in North Fort Myers on Saturday
Lee County sees decline in traffic fatalities in 2018

 Fort Myers-area traffic deaths hit triple digits for second consecutive year

BikeWalkLee: What all cyclists, pedestrians should know
 

BikeWalkLee's Statement on the 2019 Dangerous by Design Report: Assessment of Efforts in Lee County to Improve Pedestrian Safety and Future Improvements Needed

BWL issued a statement today in response to the 2019 Dangerous by Design Report.This statement looks at the extent to which Lee County jurisdictions and agencies are implementing safety improvements and where future improvements are needed by each of the jurisdictions, agencies, and stakeholders. We hope that the 2019 Report lights a fire under all those who can improve pedestrian safety. This metro area (Lee County), along with the entire state of Florida, can and must do more to reduce the number of people who die while walking every day on our roadways.

Jan. 23, 2019

Statement by BikeWalkLee to the 2019 Dangerous by Design Report: Assessment of Efforts in Lee County to Improve Pedestrian Safety and Future Improvements Needed

The just released “Dangerous by Design” 2019 report shows that our nation’s streets aren’t getting safer for pedestrians. While traffic deaths among motor vehicle occupants over this 10-year period (2008-2017) decreased by 6.1%, pedestrian deaths increased by 35.4%.  Pedestrian deaths have been steadily rising since 2009, reaching 6,000 deaths annually in 2016 and 2017. As a result, pedestrians now account for a larger proportion of traffic fatalities than they have in the past 33 years. 

Similar trends are evident in Florida and Lee County. Florida continues to be the most dangerous state in the country for pedestrians, with eight of the top 10 most dangerous metro areas in the country.  While the Cape Coral/Fort Myers metro area (Lee County) was ranked the worst in the country in the 2016 report, this year our area ranks the eighth worst in the country.  Although Lee County’s Pedestrian Danger Index (PDI) went down somewhat in real terms, our lower ranking compared to the 2016 report was primarily because other metro areas’ PDIs (all in Florida) had significant increases.

Efforts to make streets and roads safer have been underway statewide and in the various Florida metro areas, including Lee County, for almost a decade, but much work remains to be done, as under scored by this report. These results prove that desires and designs alone won’t make our streets safer – it takes the will to implement those designs and to back up those desires with the funds to make them a reality.

All Lee County jurisdictions and agencies can collectively either move forward to make our infrastructure safer for bikers and walkers, or accept higher pedestrian and cyclist death rates. More citizens are moving here.  Before long, new and old residents alike will begin to realize their quality of life is slipping because sufficient investments have not been made to make our roadways safer for everyone.  Now is the time to embrace change by funding a safer future. 

Why it matters

A chronic culture of danger for area walkers and cyclists threatens not only residents and visitors; it undercuts our economy; threatens our ability to attract and retain businesses, workers, and families to live and work here; undermines our tourism marketing; and underlines a growing safety gap driven by socioeconomic conditions and geographic patterns. 

However, investments in “Complete Streets” designs (road designs that take into account the needs and safety of ALL roadway users including cyclists and pedestrians) and bike/ped safety countermeasures not only make our streets safer for all users (including motorists), they make good economic sense.  Today, more and more people want to live and work in walkable communities, yet Lee County lags far behind in offering them. Research proves that sidewalks and shared use paths increase the value of homes in those neighborhoods. Bottom line: Investing in and maintaining walkable communities is a win/win strategy.

It is also important to understand that Complete Streets is not just about adding more sidewalks, shared use paths, and bike lanes.  It’s about making a paradigm shift—one that integrates land use and transportation planning, and changes the way we plan and design all our roads so that they’re safer for everyone, including pedestrians and cyclists. 

Proven pedestrian/bicycle safety steps

While expanding and connecting bike/ped infrastructure is an important component in making a community safer for walking and biking, many other roadway design and safety features are important for improving safety.

The most significant danger for pedestrians and cyclists is the speed of vehicles on the road, with the speed often determining whether the vulnerable road users is injured (and how seriously) or killed in any crashes with motor vehicles.  Thus, many safety countermeasures aim to reduce vehicle speed.**

The following sections of this report look at the extent to which Lee County jurisdictions and agencies are implementing safety improvements and future improvements needed. [Click here to read the rest of the BWL's Statement.]

Notes:
The “Dangerous by Design” 2019 report, released by Smart Growth America on Jan. 23, is the fifth edition of the national bi-annual pedestrian safety report which ranks states and the 100 most populous metropolitan areas around the country based on how deadly they are for people walking.* [Link to 2019 Dangerous by Design Report]

*The report uses traffic deaths for the 10-year period of 2008-2017, and looks at how deadly it is for people to walk based on the number of people struck and killed by drivers while walking, controlling for the number of residents and the number of people that walk to work.

* *The Federal Highway Administration (FHWA) has identified 20 proven safety countermeasures that offer significant and measurable impacts to improving roadway safety, several of which are specifically targeted to safety for pedestrians and cyclists. (Source: FHWA: Making our Roads Safer One Countermeasure at a Time (2018): 

Some of the most important FHWA proven safety measures for reducing the number of fatal and serious injury crashes for pedestrians and cyclists are roundabouts, road diets, medians and pedestrian crossing islands, leading pedestrian intervals, and pedestrian hybrid beacons. The Governors Highway Safety Association (GHSA) adds automated speed enforcement/red light cameras, and reducing speed limits on local roads (along with speed bumps) to this list. [GHSA report: Speeding Away from Zero: Rethinking a Forgotten Traffic Safety Challenge, Jan. 2019.] 

Links:

BikeWalkLee's full Statement on 2019 Dangerous by Design Report

2019 Dangerous by Design Report, with data on state rankings and the 100 largest metro areas rankings, along with other resources and an interactive map of 10 years of pedestrian fatalities.

 Fort Myers News-Press, Jan. 23, 2019:Nationwide dangerous roads study again places Florida first; Cape Coral, Fort Myers drops, by Michael Braun