Dangerous by Design: Jacksonville #4 in Pedestrian Fatalities, 2000 - 2009

[thelakelander]

Roadway design requirements need to change. Motorized and non-motorized modes of travel should have a higher level of buffering between them on roadways designed for higher speeds. Bike/Ped safety has been an afterthought in the roadway design process for too long.

[Starbuck]

Another thing  I learned at the Cliven Bundy School of Law:

A homicide is one person killing another. If not intentional, or if for good legal cause such as self defense, it is not nesseccarily a criminal act.

[Lunican]

The man, whose identity was not immediately available, was hit about 4:50 a.m. by a southbound SUV that was turning left into the Yates Family YMCA at Jackson Street.

Based on what is written here, it sounds like this person actually was in the pedestrian crosswalk and the driver didn't yield. Although they could have had a green arrow.

[L.P. Hovercraft]

This may be part of the problem, looking over the statute there is literally no longer any right of way for non vehicular traffic.

When I was learning to drive, I was always told that no matter what, the pedestrian ALWAYS has the right of way no matter what signs or signals there were, mainly because, hey, don't run over people right?

But this actually makes perfect sense now--legalized "open season" on the Morlock underclass who "choose" to walk or bike on the street instead of doing the logical thing and driving the standard FL issue two-ton SUV like every other right-thinking Eloi. 
Too bad boys and girls--WE don't have to even try to avoid hitting you, because YOU don't have the legal right of way! 
BTW, sorry for killing you! (yelled out the window as we zoom over and past you)

Judeo-Christian law in action or just Social Darwinism?  You decide!

[UNFurbanist]

Looks like Orlando is learning and beginning to take steps in the right direction.

If you were to walk the streets of downtown Orlando a decade from now, or in 25 years, what would you see?

If all goes as planned, you'd see a greener city, with more shopping and community gathering spaces — and a lot more people walking. The City Council has adopted a new long-term vision for downtown that resulted from months of planning by nearly 100 volunteers, including urban planners, business leaders and other professionals.

The group's 262-page redevelopment plan includes hundreds of recommendations, including new parks and a revamped entrance to Lake Eola. A common theme is that the downtown Orlando of the future will be a walker's destination, with now-major roadways spruced up or pared back to make room for window shopping, dining and relaxing. But enacting the plan would come with a major price tag: an estimated $445 million over the next 27 years.

Roadway revamp?

Big changes planned for downtown Orlando
The city is talking about changes to Robinson Street and underneath Interstate 4.
Metro Orlando is frequently cited in national studies as the most dangerous place in the U.S. for pedestrians.

But much of what city leaders endorsed focuses on making the City Beautiful a walker's and bike rider's mecca, including some long-discussed changes to its major roadways:

• One-way roads, including Orange and Rosalind avenues, could be reworked into two-way roads, in an effort to slow traffic and make crossing on foot easier.

• Robinson Street could be pared back, from four lanes to two, to accommodate bike lanes, larger sidewalks and more landscaping. And the addition of new, more-visible crosswalks could bring better access to Lake Eola Park.

The proposals also include reworking Magnolia Avenue south of Colonial Drive into a street lined by restaurants with outdoor dining and shops. A rendering shows Magnolia with no travel lanes at all, save a single bus lane. The task force received advice from more than 6,000 members of the public, according to its chair, Fred Kittinger. He said feedback made clear that improving downtown's walk-ability and expanding its parks was key.

"Those things, on the human scale, those are what you enjoy with your friends and your family, and that adds toward the quality of life," Kittinger said.

Call for a 'Bridge District'

Another challenge addressed by the task force was how to connect central Orlando's neighborhoods — from Parramore to College Park to Thornton Park — into an easily navigable, less-segmented downtown.

The plan includes putting little-used spaces to work. One "big idea" put forward was developing a network of green spaces — including small parks and other landscaping — from Garland Avenue east to the SunRail tracks, and from Lake Ivanhoe south to State Road 408.

One rendering shows how a vacant lot at Orange Avenue and Pine Street, currently frequented on the weekends by street preachers and plastic-bucket drummers, would be converted to a small, well-shaded park. Another of the major proposals is to develop the underside of Interstate 4 into a "Bridge District," a well-lit recreation and event space linking the Amway Center to the rest of downtown. "This corridor should focus on becoming a hub for sports and entertainment activities, and providing support to the anchors of the corridor — the Venues," the plan states.

Among the districts targeted for development is the North Quarter, a stretch between Lake Ivanhoe and Colonial Drive. There's been an uptick in construction there lately, and the task force identified it as a potential "gateway" to downtown. "I am extremely bullish and excited about the North Quarter," Kittinger said.

'No silver bullet'

While some of the recommended changes to downtown would be obvious, others would occur behind the scenes. Whit Blanton of the Orlando-based Renaissance Planning Group, told commissioners the city needs to focus on "creating a welcoming business environment" to lure businesses. Proposals for doing that range from improving educational programs, relaxing permitting restrictions and reducing fees, to expanding public transit, including SunRail and Lymmo. "There really is no silver bullet, there really is no one thing we need to do to ensure downtown Orlando's long term success," Blanton said.

The goals laid out in the redevelopment plan were broken down by how quickly they could be carried out:

• Short-term goals include creating a bike-and-pedestrian advisory board; improving parking though technology, better signage and more garages; expanding the Orlando Urban Trail; starting a plaque program to identify historic buildings; and expanding job-creation incentives.

• Among the mid-term goals were exploring the feasibility of turning one-way streets into two-ways; revamping Robinson Street; creating an "Urban Market" for local goods; and adding a "world-class, large scale signature event or festival."

• Long-term goals include extending SunRail; redesigning Lake Eola Park; developing a new museum; and encouraging the creation of a downtown high school "specializing in visual and performing arts."

City commissioners voted Monday to approve the redevelopment plan. And while that's a big step forward, there are still a lot of unknowns, including money and continued commitment along the way. "At the end of the day, it'll be the mayor and the City Council that will determine the priorities," Kittinger said. But Cari Coats, who chaired a 26-member executive advisory committee that reviewed the 71-member task force's work, noted during a workshop Monday that 87 percent the last redevelopment plan, from 2000, has come to fruition.

The new groundwork may have already begun. For example, Kittinger noted the I-4 Ultimate project is expected to leave the interstate's overpass higher off the ground than it is now and with better lighting, setting the stage for the "Bridge District" plan. The city's estimated the total cost of the plan at $445 million, through the year 2042.

Revenue was projected to outpace that figure, coming in at about $534 million combined from taxes, bonds, internal loans and tax incentives. Commissioner Patty Sheehan praised a proposal to encourage urban farming and renderings for a revamped entrance to Lake Eola Park, flanked by white, swan-shaped gates. And Commissioner Robert Stuart called the plan a "wonderful team effort" that would "give us the framework that we can move down and really impact what we want to see in this community in 10, 15, 20 years."

[thelakelander]

I think all of our major Florida cities, including Jax, have taken these results to heart. It will be interesting to see what type of transformations are made to our streets over the next couple of years.

[Overstreet]

1. "......against the percentage of Metropolitan Area residents who walk to work."

The original post mentioned that they were comparing deaths to population and people who actually walked to work.  How do they know that?  Did anyone ask you if you walked to work?

2. Were they  on the way to work or did we look at all deaths?

3. how many were wearing dark clothing at night and walking with traffic in the road way?

[mtraininjax]

I think all of our major Florida cities, including Jax, have taken these results to heart. It will be interesting to see what type of transformations are made to our streets over the next couple of years.

Doing NOTHING is also an option, one that I believe Jax will take. But we will add more Red Light Cameras....

[thelakelander]

^Here's an example of some local progress in the works!

JTAMobilityWorks is a program designed to complete projects funded by the extension of the Local Option Gas Tax. Leveraging that future funding, JTA has issued bonds to cover the cost of the projects. With the $100 million dollars generated through the bond issue, JTA will complete 13 roadway projects and projects in 14 mobility corridors in all areas of Jacksonville over the next five years. The project list was generated by the Jacksonville City Council and will not be altered without their approval.
​
We are reviewing transit, pedestrian and bicycling movements within each mobili-ty  corridor. Community involvement and feedback will help determine what projects will be most beneficial to the neighborhood now and in the future. This input will be gathered through a series of charrettes focused on each corridor. Projects may include items such as sidewalks, bike paths, transit accessibility improvements, lighting, bus shelters, landscaping and more.

http://www.jtamobilityworks.com/Pages/Main.aspx

[I-10east]

Doing NOTHING is also an option, one that I believe Jax will take. But we will add more Red Light Cameras....

Blah blah blah...

If you driven long enough in Jax, you'll know that many pedestrians cause their own demises. I wanna know that magic ratio; The ratio between people that are victim's of 'the dangerous by design' theory, or people simply in the category of making unwise decisions, and I'm willing to bet that the overwhelming winner is the unwise decision category. The other NIGHT I was driving on the Northside and these two people who appear to me to be on drugs practically had a conversation in the middle of 21st Street; Yeah, that's a 'dangerous by design' issue there....

[mtraininjax]

Lake,

That is a very nice map, with pretty colors. But many of those projects have not even started. And nothing is shown in downtown, where there are major issues with the roads and pedestrians. Does JTA not care about making downtown safer for Pedestrians?

[cline]

Doing NOTHING is also an option, one that I believe Jax will take. But we will add more Red Light Cameras....

Blah blah blah...

If you driven long enough in Jax, you'll know that many pedestrians cause their own demises. I wanna know that magic ratio; The ratio between people that are victim's of 'the dangerous by design' theory, or people simply in the category of making unwise decisions, and I'm willing to bet that the overwhelming winner is the unwise decision category. The other NIGHT I was driving on the Northside and these two people who appear to me to be on drugs practically had a conversation in the middle of 21st Street; Yeah, that's a 'dangerous by design' issue there....

While this may be true I don't think it tells the whole story. I review crash data for projects regularly and yes, there are crashes that involve peds and bicyclists in which it was not the drivers fault. Perhaps the pedestrian was jaywalking or was drunk- clearly not the drivers fault but still a death nonetheless. However, I'm more considered with our roadway facility designs that force the pedestrian to take a potentially unsafe route. Roadways without sidewalks or paved shoulders forcing the ped to walk in part of the lane. If that person is hit it could easily be dismissed as the pedestrian's fault when in fact they had no choice- there was no other place to walk.

I know that I've mentioned this many times but a great example is where my office is near the Avenues mall. The Mall has a major transit stop in the parking lot adjacent to the parking garage. The mall in itself is a major destination however, on the east side of Southside Blvd. there is a for-profit medical related college. Many of the students ride the bus and get off at the mall stop and make the trek across Southside to their school. They were scrubs so they are recognizable. I see it almost daily. The kicker is there are no pedestrian facilities to allow peds to safely cross Southside. You're forced to either jaywalk or cross at the light at Malabar at the entrance to the mall. No crosswalks , no ped signals. Just a large, high-speed four lane highway. These are the issues that need to be recitified.

That said- they are now putting in sidewalks along the east side of Southside. I have yet to determine if there will be any ped facilities that allow peds to safely cross Southside. That would be a crucial oversight. Nonetheless, it is a start.

[JFman00]

I love the "bus stops" on Roosevelt on the side of the train tracks that aren't even paved and have little to no access to get to them.

[cline]

I love the "bus stops" on Roosevelt on the side of the train tracks that aren't even paved and have little to no access to get to them.

There's no way to get to them. They're buffered by a RR track and fence on one side and a 6-lane roadway on the other. Outside of the stop adjacent to Edgewood and Roosevelt the ridership is next to nil for those stops.

[I-10east]

^^^I agree. A sidewalk there would be the least used sidewalk in the city. Hell, no one hardly uses the existing sidewalk as it is, except the occasional jogger.