Gainesville will take over control of a stretch of West University
The Florida Department of Transportation agreed to begin transferring responsibility of the road February 24, 2021 | 6:45am EST
Pedestrians walk down West University Avenue on Wednesday, Feb. 3, 2021. Signs down the road redirect traffic due to ongoing construction on the road, near UF campus and Midtown. Photo by Chasity Maynard | The Independent Florida Alligator
The Florida Department of Transportation will transfer control of the section of West University Avenue near UF campus to the city of Gainesville.
City and county officials met with FDOT representatives Monday at a meeting of the Metropolitan Transportation Planning Organization, a joint operation between G
Home/Getting around/Traffic Changes Planned To Make University Avenue Safer For Pedestrians
Traffic Changes Planned To Make University Avenue Safer For Pedestrians
By Lyric Lighty
February 23, 2021
Major changes are coming to the most dangerous roads for bikers and pedestrians in Alachua County.
After multiple pedestrian deaths in recent weeks along West University Avenue, the regional transportation planning group at a Monday meeting proposed installing additional traffic signals, well-lit crosswalks and temporary speed tables to slow down cars.
“It is the highest priority… that we make this an area that is safest for everybody,” said Gainesville City Commissioner David Arreola, who chairs the Metropolitan Transportation Planning Organization. “I understand that it is one of the busiest traffic lanes in the whole of Alachua County, but this has been a problem for too many years.”
A state transportation agency elated Gainesville city commissioners Monday night by agreeing to turn over to city control a stretch of West University Avenue where a University of Florida student recently died to the city.
The city has asked for that transfer so it could redesign the road and add safety features as soon as possible.
“We’ve met with the city of Gainesville on jurisdictional transfer of state roads to the city, and we are waiting to hear back from them on the roads they would like, and the limits that they would like as well,” said Jim Hannigan, a district traffic operations engineer for FDOT. “Once that happens, we’ll fine tune the specifics and then move forward with the transfer accordingly.”
Florida road projects underway in Gainesville, aim to improve safety gainesville.com - get the latest breaking news, showbiz & celebrity photos, sport news & rumours, viral videos and top stories from gainesville.com Daily Mail and Mail on Sunday newspapers.