PINELLAS COUNTY, fla — Transportation leaders are nearing the end of a study that aims to improve safety on portions of 49th Street in St. Petersburg.
Forward Pinellas spent the last year studying the roadway and talking to community members as they worked to come up with safety solutions. The road is known for speeders and a high crash count.
We spoke to Chuck Anderson with Ace Tire and Auto Repair. He has a front-row seat to the chaos.
“It is a race track! We get cars and motorcycles going by 50, 60, 70, even 80 miles per hour,” Anderson said.
He said his customers also struggle to pull in and out of the parking lot. Anderson has seen several accidents happen right outside his storefront.
“I’ve been here about a year and a half. I’ve seen eight or 10 crashes, really bad ones," Anderson said. "We had one right out here where the cars knocked into our customer's cars in the parking lot."
Another issue his employees face is safely walking or biking to work.
“The two lights are the only crosswalks here. I do hear one of our guys walks to work and rides a bike. He said it takes forever to cross the road because the crosswalks are timed incorrectly,” Anderson said.
That is one of the many issues identified in a Forward Pinellas study. Forward Pinellas is working on a report to provide recommendations to the county.
“From the crash data, a lot of focus was on the fatal or seriously injured crashes.," Valerie Brookens with Forward Pinellas said.
She explained the main goal is to reduce crashes and keep people safe.
The report and recommendations will be finalized by the end of the month. Brookens shared a few potentials with me. They include better lighting, more crosswalks, additional lanes, pedestrian paths, and median adjustments.
Forward Pinellas will work with the county to implement changes.
A Hardee County grandmother is on trial this week for leaving her 7-month-old granddaughter in a hot car where the baby died —the second grandchild to die under Tracey Nix's care. ABC Action News I-Team Reporter Kylie McGivern sat down with Kaila Nix just days ahead of her mother's trial for aggravated manslaughter.
