Your writer is a slight woman, sometimes confused for a minor, who dreams of a South Florida where everyone feels safe crossing the street. Friends, family, and in these videos, my boyfriend, would clearly prefer I keep myself away from traffic. I hate to stress them but – when pro-pedestrian/pro-safety traffic modifications are installed, I just can’t help but try them out.
So, for today’s transit humor (because no one was hurt), here are two videos of myself and my wary significant other, trying (and failing) to cross the street at 48th & Biscayne Blvd.
FDOT: Thank you! It’s an important first step. City of Miami Police: where are you??
Interesting note: Found this Florida attorney’s webpage on ‘Penalties After Violating Pedestrian and Crosswalk Law’:
“If there is a person attempting to cross a road while in a marked crosswalk you are required to stop until the person has cleared the crosswalk. Most crosswalks are marked by painted lines and a yellow sign with an image of a person walking… The rules here are pretty obvious, and most drivers wouldn’t move their vehicles through a crosswalk if a pedestrian was there.”
As the voice asks in Part 1: “They just don’t see the sign, love. They… can’t… possibly…”
This lane marking is approved by the US Department of Transportation and the Federal Highway Administration and is part of the Manual of Uniform Traffic Control Devices.
11 Responses to Motorists: No Respect for New Crosswalks on Biscayne Blvd
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Design speed in this section of Biscayne heading north is 45+mph. It’s almost like putting a crosswalk on a highway and expecting cars to come a a complete stop. It ain’t gonna happen. Travel lanes are too wide and there is no traffic calming to discourage speeding. FDOT is practicing wishful thinking here if they actually think people will stop for pedestrians. Another perfect example of FDOT designing roads to be enforced. Not sustainable.
Even though I would love to blame the rude, disrespectful drivers, the true culprits are those who create these streets. Make it too difficult to ignore pedestrians. Install bumps, Install flashlights. Paint the crossing red. Anything, to bring attention to the people risking their lives crossing these highways and force drivers to look up from their cell phones.
Similar to the sharrows on heavy traffic, high speed roads, it is a cheap way for FDOT to say they have improved pedestrian and cycling infrastructure…at least on paper.
Felipe, even with that design speed, they absolutely can stop. Just start crossing and like magic, everyone has time to stop safely.
Sorry JJJJ, either you have a death wish or you work for FDOT and you are drinking the FDOT kool aid which is laced with “wishful thinking”. Let’s go out there together, I’ll let you be the guinea pig.
^Well said, and around here they don’t stop after they hit you, since that way they can avoid taking a sobriety test and getting a DUI.
I agree with Felipe. Last week I was driving on Biscayne blvd and I saw that they had added the crosswalks and my first thought was that someone has to be crazy to use these. As a driver, by the time you realize that that there is a pedestrian trying to cross this crosswalk, it is too late to brake and come to a complete stop unless you are driving a sports car. In general I know people in Miami do not respect crosswalks at all and ignore them, but this one was poorly designed.
Just drove by there today. I have a feeling the FDOT will be adding a crosswalk signal at this location. This stretch of road will now have only 1 crosswalk for almost ten blocks. Still not nearly enough. The FDOT is still doing the bare minimum.
Felipe, my stare can stop cars as effectively as a red light.
Ha. Good luck with that. Not in Miami it won’t. Especially when cars are moving at 45+ mph here.
Felipe. Many of the drivers are from latin america. I grew up in latin america. They stop, you just need to make it clear that they HAVE to stop.