As we have previously discussed on the Corless Barfield Trial Group Blog, Florida streets and roadways are notoriously dangerous for pedestrians and bicyclists.
Fortunately, the state of Florida and other local municipalities are making a strong effort to make our Florida roadways safer for pedestrians and bicyclists. Around Tampa Bay we see new crosswalks, crosswalk lighting, bike lanes, bike paths, and traffic control devices. These infrastructure improvements are a welcome and needed change to our roadways.
In addition to infrastructure updates, the Florida Department of Transportation implemented an educational campaign, “Alert Today Alive Tomorrow.” The educational campaign is coined as “best practices for pedestrian and bicycle safety.” The objective behind the campaign is “to establish an effective partnership of stakeholders charged with implementing countermeasures to improve an identified traffic safety problem.”
The Florida Department of Transportation has rolled out a public service campaign in the form of commercials, educational materials, social media postings, and grassroots efforts. This is an effort to educate the public “to increase the baseline knowledge of safety-related pedestrian laws…”
In addition to the above outreach campaign, “Alert Today Alive Tomorrow” is working with law enforcement to educate officers and the public on pedestrian and bicycle laws. Further, the programming is helping law enforcement officers expand their understanding of “…pedestrian and bicycle crash types, contributing behaviors, and relevant statutes.”
Only time will tell if the efforts being made will help make Florida roadways safer for pedestrians and bicyclists.
Please follow the link for the Florida Department of Transportation’s guide for “Best Practices for Pedestrian and Bicycle Safety.” “This guide was written to provide information on the best practices in pedestrian and bicycle safety being used in the state of Florida, with examples of each. These best practices include coalition establishment, engineering countermeasures, engineering design and audit programs, educational initiatives, outreach events, use of social media, high visibility enforcement programs, use of technology, and other activities of significance.”