ORANGE COUNTY, Fla. — Good things can happen when there is effective communication between local government and its residents — especially when it came to the intersection of Pershing Avenue and Redditt Road in Orange County.
- Much-needed crosswalk making Orange County residents feel safer
- Pershing Ave. & Redditt Road was site of deadly pedestrian crash last year
- A crosswalk was installed month after crash after resident called county
- More Central Florida traffic news
Stacey Walton and her family have always known the intersection of Pershing Road and Redditt Road, in the Pershing community of Orlando, could be dangerous to cross.
"We've had a couple of times where we've had to stop in the middle of the road just because the cars wanted to go and not stop for us," Walton said.
These days, however, things have changed with a phone call from a resident fielded by Orange County Project Manager Lauren Torres early last year. That call was from 73-year-old Pat Santiago.
"Basically, she had just lost her sister recently in a traffic accident, and she was wondering if there was anything we could do from a safety-related way to improve the intersection," explained Torres.
So a crosswalk was installed, showing what can be accomplished when county government is able to identify an area's needs.
"Because of that initial phone call, we were able to get the Metropolitan Planning Organization to do a safety analysis, and we were able to give some other safety suggestions on what we could do," Torres explained.
Orange County also expressed that on a daily basis, their team reviews crash data to determine how to make intersections safer. Anytime a traffic-related fatality occurs within the county, traffic engineering looks into it.
They also meet with the Florida Department of Transportation quarterly to go over project ideas and funding mechanisms to get those projects moving forward.
Additionally, county officials meet regularly with a community traffic safety team, a student pedestrian safety committee, Florida Highway Patrol, Orange County Sheriff’s Office, Orange County Public Schools, and the cities of Lake Mary, Winter Park, and Orlando.
The crosswalk at Pershing and Redditt cost about $13,000 to complete, and Orange County completed it in February 2018, which means it went in about one month after that fatal pedestrian incident.
Nearly a year after the crosswalk went in, Stacey Walton is thankful the crosswalk is there and said it has already made a difference.
“Now that they have the crosswalk here, it's definitely safe here,” Walton said.
Orange County government recommends that if you need to report any suggestions, reach out to Orange County's non-emergency and info hotline 311.
You can download the 311 app or visit www.ocfl.net/311 for more information.
Last year alone, Orange County’s Traffic Engineering Division received 5,622 requests through OCFL 311, the mobile app that allows residents the ability to report non-emergency community incidents efficiently and conveniently. The division handles calls related to pedestrian and cyclist safety, as well as school-related traffic safety.