A1A - The New Jax Raceway

[second_pancake]

http://www.firstcoastnews.com/news/local/news-article.aspx?storyid=99463

NEPTUNE BEACH, FL -- As the population of the beaches continues to grow, so too grows the number of vehicles on the roads, and the pedestrians crossing in front of them.

Just ask Tom Morgan Foreman, who walks this neighborhood daily.

"I got hit October the 15th right over there. Two red lights down," says Morgan, while standing at the corner of A1A and Atlantic Boulevard.

"They life-flighted me downtown. They didn't know if I was going to live or die!"

After several surgeries and weeks in the hospital, Foreman survived to cross this street another day. But more than a half dozen pedestrians and bicyclists have died since 2000 while crossing A1A at the beaches.

"The problem is, once a person gets out into the roadway they don't know how much time they've got before the light is going to change," said Florida Department Of Transportation's James Bennett.

Bennett spoke before the Neptune Beach City Council Monday to outline the state's plans to make it safer for pedestrians to cross at the beach.

First Coast News timed the pedestrian light at Atlantic and 3rd to discover you have only about 7-seconds to walk about 80-feet before the lights begin to flash red.

That can be a problem, according to DOT's Bennett.

"Especially if you've got somebody that's elderly or that moves slow. They may be in the roadway and not aware of it when this light changes and all of a sudden they're in the middle of traffic!"

Tom Foreman knows the dilemma all too well while crossing the street with his single crutch and leg full of pins and plates.

"Hell! Hell! It's a chance. It's a chance! It's a 50-50 chance!"

But the DOT told local officials when this corridor will be repaved in the coming 24-months, crossing signals will be upgraded like one in Riverside, counting down exactly how many seconds you have to cross before the light changes.

"It gives you an idea of how much time you're going to have before you need to be out of the roadway itself," said Bennett.

Do the driver's sitting at the light not see the person in the road when their light turns green, or are they out on the road playing for pedestrian points?  I just don't get it.

[gatorback]

they are applying make-up, calling their bff's, or texting the weather channel to get that Wednesday morning prize, but  if they are wearing a wife beater tee shirt, then yes, they are more then likely playing for points for real.

[second_pancake]

they are applying make-up, calling their bff's, or texting the weather channel to get that Wednesday morning prize, but  if they are wearing a wife beater tee shirt, then yes, they are more then likely playing for points for real.

roflmao  

It really is sad though that so many people feel invincible out on the road.  Did they ever find that guy that hit the teenage girl jogging off Kernan last month?  That just made me sick.  How someone can pay so little attention to what's directly in front of them is beyond me, and then just drive away after hitting someone???

[thelakelander]

My office is on AIA.  It's a pedestrian's nightmare.  The design of the street and traffic flow makes it difficult to be on the look out for pedestrians (what's those, would be the response of the typical driver here), because you'll probably rear end someone doing so.  They don't even have sidewalks on AIA at the JTB interchange.  One of these days I'm going to do a photo tour of a walk from my office to Boston Market, which is only one block away, but the walk makes it feel like five.

[second_pancake]

I know exactly what you're talking about with the JTB/A1A thing, lake.  It's a nightmare by bike too.  Those people freakin FLY through there and you take your life into your hands just by thinking of crossing.  I sincerely hope the city does something to correct their serious error in judgment in creating that mess, but I didn't see it in the budget recently posted, lol.